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OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 
OF LONG AGO 


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THE 

LITTLE COUSINS OF LONG AGO 
SERIES 
-»S8<- 

Each volume illustrated with full page plates 
in tints. 

Cloth, 12mo, with decorative cover. 

Per volume, 60 cents 

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NOW READY 

Our Little Athenian Cousin of Long Ago 
Our Little Carthaginian Cousin of Long 
Ago 

Our Little Frankish Cousin of Long Ago 
Our Little Macedonian Cousin of Long 
Ago 

Our Little Norman Cousin of Long Ago 
Our Little Roman Cousin of Long Ago 
Our Little Saxon Cousin of Long Ago 
Our Little Spartan Cousin of Long Ago 
Our Little Viking Cousin of Long Ago 
IN PREPARATION 
Our Little Pompeiian Cousin of Long Ago 
-* 88 **- 

THE PAGE COMPANY 
53 Beacon Street, Boston, Mass. 

































































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The Little Cousins of Long Ago Series 


OUR LITTLE 
FRANKISH COUSIN 
OF LONG AGO 

Being the Story of Rainolf, A Boy 
at the Court of Charlemagne 


BY 

EVALEEN STEIN 

Author of 

‘Our Little Norman Cousin of Long Ago,” 
“Gabriel and the Hour Book,*’ etc. 


ILLUSTRATED BY 

HELENA VON LANDAU and 
CHARLES MEISTER 




BOSTON 

THE PAGE COMPANY 
MDCCCCXVII 





Copyright, 1Q1J, by 
The Page Company 

All rights reserved 


First Impression, July, 1917 


' <? 


AUG 14 1917 


©GI.A470662 

O lO i ( ‘ 


TO 

MY LITTLE COUSIN OF TO-DAY 

ELIZABETH STEVENSON 



Preface 


The Frankish ruler, Charlemagne, was one 
of the greatest monarchs that ever lived. 
Great not merely because he was a victorious 
warrior and the kingdom he ruled was enor- 
mous, but rather because living as he did in a 
time when many of his people were lawless 
and ignorant, he saw clearly the worth of law 
and wisdom. He did all in his power to gov- 
ern justly and to teach his people in all that 
best knowledge without which no nation can 
become truly civilized. 

The world has never forgotten his great 
deeds, and deep in its heart it still cherishes 
him as one of its most honored heroes. 

Many are the songs and legends that cluster 
about his name, and some day I hope you will 

vii 


viii 


PREFACE 


read these, for I am sure you will enjoy them. 
Meantime, perhaps you may be interested in 
learning something of the home life of this 
hero, so let me introduce Our Little Frankish 
Cousin of Long Ago, for he spent quite a while 
as page in the royal palace and so ought to be 
able to give you some idea of what folks did 
there. At least he can show you what Frank- 
ish boys did, — • and, I do hope you will like him ! 

Evaleen Stein. 


Contents 


CHAPTER PAGE 

Preface vii 

Pronunciation of Proper Names . xii 
I. Rainolf and the Palace Pages . . i 

II. A Bit of History 15 

III. The Palace School . . . . . 23 

IV. Dinner 37 

V. Malagis and the Boys .... 45 

VI. A Boar Hunt and a Music Lesson . 59 

VII. The Minnesinger Tells of Roland . 69 

VIII. Presents for the King .... 82 

IX. Rainolf in the Writing-Room . . 92 

X. Christmas Day of the Year 800 . .102 





* 

























































































. 







List of Illustrations 


Rainolf ..... Frontispiece / 
“ 1 You Shall Be One of My Pages 7 ” . . 36 

“ Malagis Pursed Up His Lips and Smiled ” . 55 / 

“ lx was the Day of the Great Boar Hunt ” . 59 

“ ‘ With His Dying Breath Blew a J,ong 
Blast ’ ” 77 

“ A Monk was Writing a Chapter from the 
Bible in Letters of Gold ” . . . 96 


Pronounciation of Proper Names 


Aachen (ah'-ken) 

Aix-la-Chapelle ( aks-la-sha-pel' ) 

Alcuin (al'-kwin) 

Ay'-mon 
Bag'-dad 
Blaye (blay) 

Bordeaux (bor-doe') 

Bur'-gun-dy 
Caliph (ka'lif) 

Charlemagne ( char'-le-mane ) 

Des'sen-berg 

Durandal (doo-ron-dal') 

Einhard (ine'-hard) 

E'-mir 

Haroun-al-Raschid ( ha-roon'-al-rash'-id ) 

Ir'-min-sul 

Mal'-a-gis 

Marsilius ( mar-see' -le-us) 

Ol'-i-vant 

Pa-der-born' 

Pyrenees (pir'-e-neez) 

Rain'-olf 

Roncesvalles (ron-thes-val'-yas) 


Our Little Frankish Cousin 
of Long Ago 


CHAPTER I 

RAINOLF AND THE PALACE PAGES 

One summer afternoon, ever and ever and 
ever so long ago, along a crooked street in the 
old town of Aachen a boy was walking slowly. 
He held in his hands a half unrolled scroll of 
parchment covered with queer squares and 
circles and quantities of stars, and at these he 
was peering with an intent curiosity. Indeed, 
he was so absorbed in trying to make out the 
figures on the parchment that he forgot to 
notice where he was going; and presently trip- 
ping over a large stone projecting from the 
narrow ill-paved street, down he tumbled, 
sprawling plump into the midst of a family of 


l 


2 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


little pigs that had been following their mother 
just ahead of him. 

Instantly there was a tremendous squealing 
as the frightened little beasts scurried off in all 
directions, and mingling with their squeals rose 
a chorus of merry shouts of laughter from a 
group of boys coming from the opposite direc- 
tion. 

“Ho! Ho! Rainolf! ” they cried. “What 
were you trying to do? Catch a little pig for 
the palace cooks? ” 

Meantime Rainolf, having scrambled to his 
feet, began ruefully to brush the dust from his 
tunic of white linen and his legs wrapped in 
strips of the same material cross-gartered with 
knitted bands of blue wool. One of the boys 
good-naturedly picked up his round blue cap, 
while another handed him the roll of parchment 
which had been the cause of his trouble. As 
the boy caught a glimpse of the tracings on the 
scroll, “ Rainolf,” he said, “ I’ll wager you 


RAINOLF AND THE PALACE PAGES 3 


have been to see Master Leobard the astrol- 
oger ! ” 

“ Yes,” replied Rainolf, “ he was a friend 
of my father, and mother said for me to go to 
see him when I came to Aachen. I hunted 
him up to-day, and he was very kind and made 
my horoscope for a present.” 

Here the boys gathered around Rainolf 
again as he unrolled his parchment, and they all 
looked it over trying to puzzle out its mean- 
ing. Now, a horoscope was a chart showing 
the position of the stars in the sky at the hour 
of a baby’s birth; and from these the astrologer 
who made it, and who was supposed to know 
much about the stars and a good deal of magic 
besides, declared he could foretell the child’s 
future. People who could afford it in those 
days liked to have these horoscopes made for 
their children; but if one did not happen to 
have it done when a baby it answered just as 
well later on to furnish the astrologer with the 


4 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


right dates. This was the way Master Leo- 
bard had made the one for Rainolf, who had 
been born twelve years before, in a castle some 
distance from Aachen whither he had lately 
been sent by his widowed mother so that he 
might be educated in the court of the great 
King Charlemagne who ruled the land. 

As now the boys looked at the parchment, 
“ Well,” said one of them, “ it’s no use for us 
to try to make it out. What did Master Leo- 
bard say? Is your fortune good? ” 

“ Yes, Aymon,” answered Rainolf, “ I think 
it’s fairly good, — though he did say I would 
get some hard knocks now and then.” 

“ So,” laughed one of the boys, “ I suppose 
you tumbled down just now because your stars 
said you had to ! ” 

Rainolf smiled as he added, u At any rate, 
if I do get some knocks, he said I would be a 
good fighter and always conquer my enemies.” 
And he drew himself up proudly. 


RAINOLF AND THE PALACE PAGES 5 


“ You are a good fighter now,” said Aymon, 
his close friend, as he looked admiringly at 
Rainolf’s straight figure and fearless face with 
its blue eyes and frame of flaxen hair. 

“ But,” went on Rainolf, “ he said there was 
something else I would like much better than 
fighting and that I would make a success of it, 
and that I would see something of the world.” 
Just here the horoscope was cut short, as 
“ Look out! ” cried one of the boys, and they 
all hastened to flatten themselves against the 
wall of an old brown house in front of which 
they happened to be standing. For a cart was 
coming down the street, which was so narrow 
that anybody walking there had to get out of 
the way or else squeeze up against some of the 
brown-beamed wooden houses or dark little 
shops on either side. 

Meantime the cart came trundling by. It 
was heavy and rudely built, its two wheels made 
from solid blocks of wood which had been hewn 


6 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


with an ax till they were tolerably round. The 
cart was drawn by a big white ox wearing a 
clumsy wooden collar; and his patient eyes 
scarcely blinked nor did he turn his head as the 
heavy wheels bumped and creaked over the 
uneven stones of the street. Beside the cart 
walked a bare-headed peasant with red hair and 
beard and wearing a tunic of coarse gray home- 
spun, his legs wrapped in bands of linen criss- 
crossed around them and on his feet shoes of 
heavy leather. 

“ Good-day,” said Rainolf as the man 
passed. But the peasant only turned his head 
and stared. 

“Where are you going?” pursued another 
boy undaunted by his silence. 

At this, “ To the King’s palace,” muttered 
the peasant as he prodded the ox with a long 
goad he held in his hand. 

The ox started, the cart gave a jerk, and 
“ Squawk! Squawk! ” came from a couple of 


RAINOLF AND THE PALACE PAGES 7 


geese within as with feet tied together they 
helplessly flopped against some bags of meal 
piled in front of them. 

“ Oh,” said Aymon, standing on tiptoe trying 
to look into the cart, “ never mind, Rain- 
olf, that you didn’t catch those little pigs! 
All these things are going to the palace 
kitchen ! ” 

“ Yes,” put in another boy, pointing down 
the crooked street, “ and there come a lot 
more ! ” 

Sure enough, there were more ox-carts, and 
in between them even some flocks of sheep and 
a number of cattle. All these provisions the 
peasant folk had raised on the lands of the King 
near Aachen, and they were bringing them in, 
as they did once in so often, for the use of the 
large household at the palace. By and by, 
when these supplies were all eaten, the King 
and all the palace people would probably move 
off for a while to some other part of the king- 


8 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


dom where he had more farms to fill the royal 
larder. 

As now the last cart went creaking along the 
street, “ Where are you boys going? ” asked 
Rainolf of the others, who, like himself, were 
all pages from the palace. 

“ Oh,” said Aymon, “ nowhere in particular. 
The King’s chamberlain sent us to old Grim- 
wald, the armorer, to see if he had finished 
some new boar-spears for the big hunt next 
week. The palace armorer has more than he 
can do, so Grimwald is helping him. But the 
spears were not done.” 

Meantime they all loitered along the street, 
now and then looking in the shops on either 
side. These were small and dark, more like 
little cubby holes than our idea of shops. 
There was no glass in their narrow windows, 
only heavy wooden shutters to be closed and 
barred at night. The shop-keepers sat on 
benches inside, most of them hard at work 


RAINOLF AND THE PALACE PAGES 9 


making their wares. There was the shoe- 
dealer sewing up shoes of thick leather cut in 
one piece soles and all, or, if one preferred, he 
had sandals of rawhide with leather thongs to 
tie them on. There was the cloth-seller, whose 
wife had spun and woven the woollen stuffs and 
the rolls of linen and narrow colored bands in 
which the Frankish men wrapped and cross- 
gartered their legs; for no one had thought 
of trousers or stockings. Then there was the 
silk-dealer, whose wares had come from the 
town of Lyons, and goldsmiths beating out 
trinkets of gold and silver for the noble 
ladies. 

Past these was a many-gabled inn; for as 
Aachen was the King’s capital, numbers of 
people came there on different errands. Across 
from the inn was a grassy square and a low 
brown house where on market days one might 
buy cheeses and chunks of meat and coarsely 
ground meal and a few kinds of vegetables and 


10 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


for sweetmeats cakes made of meal and honey, 
for nobody had heard of sugar. 

Near the market-house a juggler was stand- 
ing on his head, but only a few beggars and 
children were watching him; and as the boys 
went along they merely glanced at him with a 
scornful “Pooh! Does he suppose we can’t 
stand on our heads, too? ” For jugglers were 
plenty and this one not so clever as most. 

Beyond the square was the shop of Grim- 
wald, the armorer, whose swords and helmets 
and spears were the best in Aachen. Grim- 
wald was busy making a suit of armor by sew- 
ing hundreds of small iron rings on a tunic of 
leather, and beside him an apprentice was 
sharpening the boar-spears as he turned a great 
grindstone. Standing close to this was an 
elfish figure in a bright yellow tunic, a little man, 
not more than four feet high, with a peaked 
face and strange deep eyes, now shrewd and 
keen, now twinkling and kindly. 


RAINOLF AND THE PALACE PAGES 11 


“ Ho ! ” cried one of the boys, looking into 
the shop, “there is the King’s jester!” 
“ Malagis,” he called to the dwarf, “ what are 
you doing in there? ” 

At this Malagis came out, limping a little 
because of one crooked foot; though it was 
astonishing how he could caper when he wanted 
to. “ Oh,” he said, “ I was just standing by 
the grindstone a minute getting my wits 
sharpened. It would be good for all of you, 
too,” he added, sweeping the group with a 
carved ivory staff he held, “ only it would take 
so frightfully long I ” 

“ One thing,” said Aymon laughing, “ you 
don’t need to sharpen your tongue, Malagis! ” 

Here the dwarf prodded him with his staff, 
just as the peasants prodded their oxen, and 
began capering along beside the boys. 

Soon they passed the row of shops and came 
to dwelling houses, some with upper stories and 
peaked roofs, some low and rambling. On 


12 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


nearly all heavy shutters stood open showing 
within sometimes richly dressed ladies and their 
maids spinning and weaving or embroidering, 
and sometimes women in homespun bending 
over pots and pans in which things were cook- 
ing at big fireplaces while puffs of smoke curled 
out through the windows till you would have 
been quite sure all those houses were afire! 
But the boys knew better and paid no attention, 
for nobody had chimneys, and smoke was ex- 
pected to get out as best it could. 

Presently, “ I’ll tell you what let’s do ! ” cried 
Rainolf. “ Let’s go back to the palace swim- 
ming-pool and see if there is a chance for a 
swim! ” 

“All right!” echoed the rest, and off they 
scampered past the last straggling houses till 
they came to the edge of Aachen, and looming 
ahead rose the great palace of the mighty King 
Charlemagne. After the plain wooden houses 
of the old town, it would have made you blink 


RAINOLF AND THE PALACE PAGES 13 


to see how very large and fine was this palace 
with its stone walls and tall towers and its many 
porticoes and doorways and cornices all of 
beautifully carved marble. In the midst of it 
was a wide courtyard with grass and flowers 
and numbers of marble statues. 

Not far from the palace, in a pleasant 
meadow-land, was a large pool lined with 
blocks of stone and divided into two parts, in 
one of which was warm and in the other cold 
water; for it was fed from springs nearby, and 
some of these always ran warm. Indeed, the 
chief reason why King Charlemagne had built 
one of his finest palaces here was that he might 
bathe often in these warm medicinal springs. 
He had had the swimming-pool made large 
enough, however, for others of his household 
to enjoy it as well; though the boys would not 
have presumed to go in if the King himself 
were there. But when they came up only a 
few soldiers and other humbler folk were swim- 


14 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


ming about, so all they had to do was to throw 
off their tunics and jump in, and soon they were 
splashing around like a school of porpoises. 

Presently Malagis, who had not hurried, 
came along by the pool and seeing Rainolf’s 
parchment, which had fallen from his tunic and 
was about to tumble into the water, picked it up 
and placed a stone on it for safety, muttering 
as he did so, “ There 1 One of those silly boys 
has been getting his horoscope! They’re 
always in such a hurry to know their fortunes 
all at once, — as if they wouldn’t find out soon 
enough anyhow! I could have told him my- 
self, if I was a mind to, much better than old 
Master Leobard ! ” And Malagis poked the 
parchment contemptously with his foot; for he 
was reputed something of a magician himself. 


CHAPTER II 


A BIT OF HISTORY 

Now, while the boys are in swimming, sup- 
pose we stop a minute and answer a few ques- 
tions. If you children would like to know 
when this story begins, you will have to subtract 
something over eleven hundred years from this 
year and that will leave you just three figures; 
which means that it was enormously long ago. 
For if you hav? subtracted right you will find 
that the story begins in the year 800. And if 
you want to know where the old town of 
Aachen was, you will have to turn in your geog- 
raphies to the map of Europe and look in the 
western part of Prussia; and there you will 
find that Aachen, which is very near to France, 
has also a French name, Aix-la-Chapelle, which 
means Aachen of the chapel, or church, because 


15 


16 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


of the wonderful one which King Charlemagne 
built there. 

But if anybody had told Rainolf or Aymon 
or the rest of those boys in swimming that the 
town was ever called Aix-la-Chapelle and that 
it was in Prussia, they would have stared and 
laughed; for the simple reason that there wasn’t 
any Prussia then. Neither was there any Ger- 
many or France as they are bounded in your 
maps, nor Belgium nor Holland. 

“ Dear me ! ” you say, “ why what in the 
world was there ? ” 

Well, there was just the same big country 
with its hills and valleys and mountains and 
rivers, only it wasn’t all settled and divided up 
and named as it is now. It was all ruled by 
King Charlemagne, and, to be sure, some of it 
to the east of Aachen was vaguely called Ger- 
many, but nobody could have told exactly how 
far Germany went. While west and north and 
south of Aachen, where is now Belgium and 


A BIT OF HISTORY 


17 


Holland and France, was mostly called Gaul. 
In this great region many different kinds of peo- 
ple lived. [Those in the southern part of Gaul 
were quite civilized, because once upon a time 
they had been conquered by the Romans who 
had taught them many things. [Those up in 
the northern part of the kingdom were many 
of them still wild and savage ; while those in the 
middle part were, as might have been expected 
betwixt and between; that is, civilized in 
many ways and in others very rude and igno- 
rant. 

A few hundred years before our story begins, 
when the whole country was peopled by wander- 
ing tribes generally fighting each other, one 
tribe, called the Franks, being stronger than the 
rest, managed to get possession of a large part 
of the land and a Frankish chief named Clovis 
became King. Clovis conquered many of the 
other tribes and added to his kingdom; and 
though he had been a heathen to start with, he 


18 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


ended by being baptized and becoming a Chris- 
tian. 

But Clovis seemed to be the only great chief 
of his family; for after he died his sons and 
grandsons and great- great- grandsons were all 
so stupid and good-for-nothing that the Frank- 
ish people did not know what to do with them. 
They did not like to take their crowns away 
from them, so they let them still be called Kings, 
but shut them up in their palaces or sometimes 
even carted them off to farmhouses in the coun- 
try. And while each “ Sluggard King,” for so 
they were nick-named, thus dawdled away his 
life, the kingdom was really managed by a man 
called the Mayor of the Palace. 

By and by there was a Mayor of the Palace 
named Pepin who was a very clever man and 
decided to make a change. He thought that 
as all the descendants of Clovis were too silly to 
rule and other people had to do all their work 
for them, it was high time to stop pretending 


A BIT OF HISTORY 


19 


they were Kings. By this time all the Frankish 
people had grown very tired of the foolish old 
royal family and quite agreed with Pepin. 
They said that as he had been such a good 
Mayor of the Palace he should be King instead 
of Childeric, who was the last of the family of 
Clovis and who was then shut up in a farm- 
house where he did nothing but eat and drink 
and doze. 

So the big Frankish warriors lifted Pepin up 
on their shields and showed him to everybody 
as their new King; and a very good one he 
made. 

But it was Pepin’s baby boy Charles who was 
destined to be the lasting glory of the Franks. 
When he grew up and inherited the kingdom, 
he soon earned the title of Charles the Great, 
or Charlemagne, which is the same thing. He 
extended his dominions till his kingdom spread 
over all that is now France and Germany and 
most of Italy and much more besides and was 


20 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


one of the largest in the world; and not only 
was he a great warrior, but he was one of the 
very greatest and wisest rulers the world has 
ever seen. Indeed, he was so remarkable and 
so powerful that it is no wonder that for hun- 
dreds of years after his time people declared 
that he was at least ten feet tall, that in battle 
he could hew down dozens of his enemies at a 
single stroke, and that he was so wise that he 
knew instantly everything that went on in the 
farthest parts of his kingdom. 

Yes, about Charlemagne and the Twelve 
Paladins, who were his bravest warriors, more 
wonderful stories have been told and more 
beautiful songs sung than about any other King 
that ever lived, excepting only King Arthur 
of Britain and the Knights of the Round 
Table; and, of course, you have heard of 
them. 

Now, Charlemagne was indeed very wise; 
and among other things he saw that the Franks 


A BIT OF HISTORY 


21 


had much to learn in many ways. And this 
brings us back to the King’s palace; for he knew 
one thing particularly his people had to be 
taught, and that was how to build beautiful 
houses such as he had seen in his wars in Italy 
and other far countries. So when he wanted to 
build the palace at his favorite Aachen he 
brought home with him not only Italian work- 
men to teach the Franks, but also quantities of 
fine marble columns and handsome mosaics and 
beautiful carvings. 

And that was why the great palace there was 
one of the finest of the many belonging to 
Charlemagne. And that was why, too, the big 
swimming-pool was so well made ; for the King 
had seen baths like it at Rome. 

But really it is time Rainolf and all those 
other boys came out of it, for they have been 
swimming all the while we have been talking 
about the Frankish people! And, besides, 
Charlemagne himself has not yet come into the 


22 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


story, and surely you must want to see what 
such a wonderful King is like. 

So splash! out come the boys and run off to 
put on their clothes, and — if you look sharp 
— you will see the mighty Charlemagne come 
into the very next chapter ; though he will come 
quietly and not as if he were entering a 
captured city. When he did that people used 
to be terribly frightened; for marching before 
him would be such multitudes of soldiers with 
iron spears and coats of iron mail and iron 
leggings, and so many bold knights on horse- 
back, wearing iron armor and iron helmets and 
iron breastplates and iron gauntlets and carry- 
ing iron battle-axes, and then the mighty Charle- 
magne himself clad in iron from head to toe, 
riding an iron gray horse, holding in one hand 
an enormous iron lance, and looking so — but 
let us wait till he comes into the story. 


CHAPTER III 


THE PALACE SCHOOL 

The next morning rather early, as usual, 
Rainolf and the other boys tumbled out of their 
beds in the wing of the palace where they slept, 
and as soon as they were dressed they ran out 
into the courtyard and began jumping over each 
other, for all the world like leap-frog! So 
that must have been it. By and by, “ I’m 
hungry! ” cried Aymon. 

“ So am I ! ” said Rainolf. “ Let’s find 
something to eat ! ” 

And they all trooped off to the great palace 
kitchen where the cooks gave them some bread 
and cold meat and cheese, which they stood 
around and ate wherever they were not too 
much in the way. For breakfast was not made 
much of by anybody, nor set out except for the 


23 


24 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


more important people of the palace. And it 
was never much like our breakfasts. There 
was always a great deal of meat for food, and 
for drink there was mead and wine. It had not 
occurred to people in those days that it might 
be agreeable to eat different kinds of things at 
different meals. And, besides, even if they had 
thought of it, they couldn’t make their break- 
fasts very different from their dinners, because 
none of the Franks had ever heard of such 
things as rolled oats or puffed rice or coffee or 
griddle-cakes and maple syrup, poor things ! 

Nevertheless, when the boys had finished 
munching down their meat and bread they 
began, just as you do, to think about school. 

“ Rainolf ! ” said Aymon, “ if you spell the 
rest of us down again to-day or get more good 
marks in grammar, I’ll fight you ! ” But as he 
laughed good-naturedly as he made this threat, 
Rainolf laughed too. “ Never mind,” he 
answered, “ maybe you won’t have to I I think 


THE PALACE SCHOOL 


25 


to-day’s lesson will be a good deal harder than 
yesterday.” 

By this time they all decided that they had 
better be starting: so they made their way, not 
to the old town of Aachen, but across the court- 
yard to another part of the palace. Entering 
a handsome doorway and passing through a 
long corridor they came to a large room with 
a ceiling supported by many pillars and a floor 
of beautiful mosaics which the king had brought 
from Italy along with the rich tapestries which 
hung on the walls. At one side of the room 
was a raised platform, or dais, on which stood 
two throne-like chairs; while down the length 
of the floor below were a number of carved 
wooden benches. 

When Rainolf and the rest of the pages en- 
tered they found a group of other boys and a 
few little girls already there. These were 
mostly children of the common soldiers and 
humbler folks about the palace. And, besides 


26 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


these, were quite a number of grown people, too, 
many of them noble ladies and gentlemen. 
The latter were dressed in linen tunics with 
sword-belts, and leg wrappings cross-gartered 
in bright colors, and all had long mustaches and 
shaven chins and hair nearly reaching their 
shoulders. The ladies wore silken tunics 
edged with embroidery, and trailing skirts, and 
on their heads embroidered scarfs arranged in 
folds covering their hair and with the long 
ends hanging down or else wrapped closely 
about their white throats. 

Presently there was a hush, and everybody 
stood back and bowed very low as a group of 
people was seen coming toward the open door. 
Look sharp now, for here comes Charlemagne ! 

Rainolf fairly held his breath and stared 
with all his eyes as the stately figure drew near; 
for he had been in the palace only a short time 
and had seen but little of the King whose many 
affairs of state and various wars kept him often 


THE PALACE SCHOOL 


27 


away from Aachen. Rainolf had heard so much 
of the great deeds of Charlemagne, how six 
Kings called themselves his vassals, and how his 
fame was known and talked of all the way from 
Bagdad to Britain, that to the boy he seemed 
quite like the hero of some wonder tale, — as 
indeed he was ! 

As now the great King entered the school- 
room he smiled pleasantly at the people there, 
and as he crossed over to take his place in one 
of the throne-like chairs on the dais, one might 
see that he was about fifty-five years old, and 
though not ten feet tall he was very near a 
good seven, and bore himself with royal dignity. 

Circling his noble dome-like head was a gold 
and jeweled crown and beneath it hung rather 
long locks of iron gray hair, while over his 
breast flowed a long gray beard. His large 
blue eyes were bright and sparkling and his 
face wore a kindly but determined expression. 

His dress was very simple; for the King 


28 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


loved the old Frankish costume of his people 
and only on very grand occasions would he 
consent to wear the splendid jeweled robes 
which belonged to his station. On this day he 
wore, as usual, a plain tunic of whito linen with 
a silken hem of blue and girt with a sword-belt 
of interlaced gold and silver from which hung 
a sword with hilt and scabbard of the same 
precious metals. A square sea-blue mantle was 
fastened over one shoulder with a golden clasp 
and on his feet were leather shoes laced with 
gold cords over white leg-wrappings cross- 
gartered well above the knees with narrow 
bands of purple silk. 

Beside Charlemagne, on the other tall chair, 
sat his Queen Luitgarde, while several of the 
princesses, his daughters, took their places near 
by; his sons would have been there, too, but 
they happened to be off fighting in a distant part 
of the kingdom. The noble ladies and gentle- 
men seated themselves on the benches nearest 


THE PALACE SCHOOL 


29 


the dais, while Malagis perched on its edge 
looking very wise. Last of all, the palace 
pages and other children sat down on the 
farther benches. 

Presently a young man entered, and, bowing 
before Charlemagne, laid on his knees a large 
parchment book. 

“ That’s Master Einhard, the King’s scribe. 
I guess you haven’t seen him before; he’s been 
sick since you came,” whispered Aymon to 
Rainolf, as the young man seated himself on the 
edge of the dais near Malagis and took from 
the bosom of his tunic a tablet of parchment 
and a goose-quill pen ready to write down any- 
thing the King might wiih 

“ The King thinks a gr*at deal of him,” 
went on Aymon, “ and he does of Master 
Alcuin, too. Look, there he comes now! ” 
Every one looked toward the tall man en- 
tering the room. He wore a monk’s hood and 
robe, and in the cord that bound the latter at 


30 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


the waist were stuck some goose-quill pens and 
the hollow tip of a cow’s horn filled with ink. 
This monk, who was the teacher, bowed re- 
spectfully to the King and Queen, took his 
place in the middle of the floor and school be- 
gan. 

Now if you think that the great Charlemagne 
and Queen Luitgarde and all the other ladies 
and gentlemen had come simply to visit this 
palace school, you are very much mistaken! 
No, indeed! They were all there to study 
just as hard as Rainolf and Aymon and all the 
other boys and girls. 

For you must know that before the time of 
Charlemagne the Frankish people had no 
schools, and most of them knew just about as 
little of books and such things as reading, writ- 
ing, and arithmetic and spelling and geography 
as they could possibly get along with; and that 
was very little indeed. But the wise King had 
done his best to change all this. All through 


THE PALACE SCHOOL 


31 


the country there were many monasteries, and 
in these he had established schools so that the 
monks (who were about the only people then 
who could read or write) might teach the chil- 
dren of both rich and poor. And even in his 
own palace Charlemagne had for nearly twenty 
years kept up a school taught by the best 
scholars in the world, and in it he himself and 
the princes and princesses and many other 
grown folks of his household were not ashamed 
to sit with the children and study as hard as any 
of you boys and girls do now. But Sh! for, 
as I told you, the school had begun. 

Everybody was still as a mouse; only Charle- 
magne spoke. “ Master Alcuin,” he said, “ I 
would have you explain some points of gram- 
mar which I do not understand,” and he looked 
with a perplexed air at the parchment book on 
his knees. 

The monk stepped to the King’s side and in 
a low tone cleared up the passage which puzzled 


32 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


him. Soon Charlemagne closed the book and 
said again, “ Master Alcuin, pray tell us some- 
thing of the courses of the stars at this season.’’ 

For Charlemagne was always deeply inter- 
ested in the sky and used often to watch the 
stars for hours at night from the top of one of 
the highest palace towers. 

Master Alcuin, as he was bidden, gave a lit- 
tle talk on astronomy; then going to an oaken 
table near by and taking a number of little 
books, almost like primers, written by hand on 
parchment, he gave them to the children to 
study. 

“ Aymon,” whispered Rainolf softly to his 
friend who sat next to him, “ did you say Mas- 
ter Alcuin made these books himself? ” 

“ Yes,” whispered Aymon, “he wrote them 
all out for us to use in the school.” 

The books were not so easy to learn from, 
either, even if they were primers; for all were 
in Latin. That was because the Frankish peo- 


THE PALACE SCHOOL 


33 


pie had been fighting so long trying to make a 
nation of themselves that they had neither time 
nor learning to write books in their own lan- 
guage, which was still unfinished, and nobody 
was quite sure about its spelling or grammar. 
But the Greek and Latin people had been wise 
and civilized long before, while the Franks 
were still wild barbarians, and had written 
many wonderful books which had been care- 
fully copied by monks and handed down in writ- 
ing as there were no printing presses yet. It 
was from some of these that Master Alcuin 
had written the Latin books for the palace 
school. 

As the children were puzzling over their les- 
sons, presently he began asking them questions. 
And then Malagis, as he sometimes did when 
no one was looking, darted from his seat on 
the dais and hovered about slyly poking with 
his ivory wand any boy or girl who looked 
sleepy or wasn’t paying attention; for a jester 


34 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


always did pretty much as he pleased and no- 
body dared complain. 

I have no idea just what Master Alcuin’s 
questions were about, but very likely it was 
grammar and spelling and arithmetic. At any 
rate, Rainolf was able to give more right an- 
swers than anybody else, and Aymon, sitting 
beside him, began to nudge him warningly. 
But Rainolf only nudged back and went on an- 
swering as many more as he could; for he had 
always been anxious to learn, and before com- 
ing to Aachen had studied hard at a little mon- 
astery school near his home castle. 

While the boys and girls were having their 
lesson the grown folks were all busy with their 
own books. But soon the King, who was al- 
ways interested in how things went on in his 
school, noticed Rainolf and quietly listened as 
the boy, with bright eyes and eager face, mod- 
estly answered Master Alcuin’s questions. 
And after a while, when the school was dis- 


THE PALACE SCHOOL 


35 


missed for the day, before Charlemagne passed 
out he looked toward the boys’ bench and 
beckoned to Rainolf. 

Rainolf was so surprised and abashed that 
he blushed and stared and stood as if rooted 
to the spot. 

“Go on, booby!” whispered Aymon anx- 
iously, giving him a hurried push. 

At this Rainolf suddenly plunged forward, 
and gathering his wits together managed to 
bow respectfully as he stood before the King, 
though he was trembling with excitement and 
his knees fairly knocked together. 

“ Lad,” said the King, smiling at his em- 
barrassment, “ I liked the way you answered 
Master Alcuin’s questions. I wish all my sub- 
jects would try as hard to learn something! ” 
And the great King sighed; for above all things 
he longed to civilize his people and teach them 
the world’s best knowledge. Then, suddenly 
extending his hand to the boy; “Child,” he 


36 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


said, “ you shall be one of my own pages. You 
remind me of Master Einhard when he was 
a boy in this same school. Where did you 
come from? ” 

“ Sir,” said Rainolf faintly, at last finding 
his tongue, “ my home is Castle Aubri, on the 
Meuse river. My father was Count Gerard. 
He was killed in your last war with the Saxons. 
Mother sent me here a week ago so I might go 
to the palace school.” 

“ That was right,” said Charlemagne. 
“ You have brave blood in your veins, boy. I 
remember your father well; he was a gallant 
soldier and a loyal subject. When we go to the 
banquet hall come up and stand near me. You 
shall be my cup-bearer instead of Charloun, 
who is a stupid lad.” And the king left the 
room with Master Alcuin and the others. 




u c 


YOU SHALL BE ONE OF MY PAGES 


y yy 






CHAPTER IV 


DINNER 

When the King passed on, Rainolf stood 
quite bewildered at his sudden advancement; 
though he could not help but wonder how it 
would suit Charloun, a fat dull-faced boy who 
had been made cup-bearer because his father 
was a powerful noble. 

And he did not have to wait long to see. 
For Charloun had noticed the King talking to 
Rainolf and as now the latter was alone for a 
moment, he marched up to him demanding an- 
grily “ What did the King say to you? ” 

Rainolf drew himself up haughtily as he an- 
swered, “ I don’t know that it’s any of your 
business, Charloun! Though,” he added, 
“ perhaps it is a little, seeing that he told me 
I am to be cup-bearer instead of you.” 


37 


38 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


At this Charloun’s dull face flushed with rage 
and he half doubled up his fist to strike Rain- 
olf. But Rainolf, who was watching him, 
looked him straight in the eye, and “ Be care- 
ful! ” he warned. 44 This is no place to fight! 
But if you want to come out doors and do it, 
I am ready whenever you are.” 

Charloun, who was at heart a coward, 
dropped his fat fist and began to think he was 
not so anxious for a fight after all. And, the 
truth was, he was really relieved to be rid of 
the office of cup-bearer as several times Charle- 
magne had asked him questions about his les- 
sons which he was quite unable to answer. So, 
muttering to himself, he stalked off; and Rain- 
olf watching him smiled, for he knew Charloun 
was much more interested in the fact that it was 
nearly dinner-time than in his lost honors. 

Meantime in the great banquet hall near the 
schoolroom long tables were set, the one for 
the royal family being placed on a dais at the 


DINNER 


39 


upper end of the room. There were no cloths 
on these tables which were all made of polished 
boards laid over trestles, but on the royal one 
and those for the many noble ladies and gentle- 
men of the household were fine silver plates 
and gold and silver cups and flagons. [There 
were neither forks nor spoons, however, only 
knives, which were needed to cut the meat of 
which there was always a great supply, and 
this and the other things people were expected 
to eat with their fingers. At the lower end of 
the hall were tables for the humbler palace 
folks, who had only wooden plates and great 
earthenware platters for their meat. 

Rainolf had come into the hall while things 
were being made ready, and as he stood quietly 
watching them he thought how different was 
the great palace, with its handsome rooms and 
all the gold and silver dishes from his own 
home. His father’s castle, like those of most 
of the Frankish nobles through the country, 


40 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


was just a big wooden house built around a 
square courtyard and protected outside by a 
palisade of roughly hewn logs and a moat be- 
yond that. To be sure, there were many things 
going on within the wooden walls of the big 
rambling house. His father had had his own 
armorer; there was a stable for his war horses; 
there was a small mill where they ground the 
grain raised by the peasants on the castle lands; 
there were rooms where his mother and her 
maids spun and wove and embroidered; — 
though as Rainolf looked at the wonderful 
tapestries hanging on the palace walls he could 
not but admit they were more beautiful than 
those his mother had so carefully made for 
their home and which he had always before 
thought the finest in all the world. And then 
the dishes at home were just great wooden 
bowls with only a few silver and copper flagons, 
— but never mind, for dinner was ready and 
all the palace folks were taking their places. 


DINNER 


41 


Rainolf, as he had been bidden, came and 
stood near the chair of Charlemagne. Though 
it seemed strange to him to be so close to the 
great King, yet he was not so awkward in his 
new place as he had been used to waiting on 
his father in the same way. 

Meantime, Aymon and the other pages 
busied themselves bringing in food for the royal 
table and those of the nobles. The boys only 
carried the dishes, for the carving and serving 
of them was an honor belonging to the high- 
born young men. 

“ Boy,” whispered one of these, a tall hand- 
some youth standing near Rainolf, “ take that 
golden flagon and fill the King’s cup with wine.” 

Rainolf hastened to do as he was told, and 
lifting in both hands the beautiful golden cup 
richly chased with figures of saints and circled 
with precious stones, he sank on one knee, as 
his father had taught him, and held it up to 
the King, who received it graciously, barely 


42 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


tasted it, and set it down by his plate. And 
Rainolf found that being cup-bearer for Charle- 
magne was not very hard work, as he took 
only three sips of wine all through the din- 
ner. Wine was then the common drink, but the 
King despised drunkenness and always set the 
example of taking but little. 

Neither was the dinner elaborate, for Charle- 
magne liked simple things, and, best of all, the 
roasted pheasants and hares which presently 
two hunters came bringing in piping hot and 
still on the long iron spits on which they had 
been cooked at the kitchen fireplace. These 
were carved and placed on the King’s plate by 
the young Frankish noble who served also 
Queen Luitgarde and a tall man in rich priestly 
robes who sat at the King’s left. This was the 
Archbishop of the Aachen cathedral, and near 
him was the teacher Master Alcuin; for 
Charlemagne always delighted to honor re- 
ligion and learning. 


DINNER 


43 


At the royal table also sat young Master 
Einhard who smiled kindly at Rainolf, who 
colored and smiled back; for the two seemed 
drawn to one another, and, indeed, were to be- 
come close friends in spite of the difference in 
their ages. Next to Master Einhard the 
dwarf Malagis perched on his own special 
chair, and now and then catching Rainolf’s eye 
he would give him so droll a wink that the boy 
could hardly keep his face straight; and he did 
not dare to laugh for all through dinner every- 
body kept very still because at one side of the 
hall a brown-robed monk was standing holding 
in his hands a parchment book from which he 
read aloud in Latin. 

.The book was a beautifully painted copy of 
“ The City of God,” written by the good Saint 
Augustine. Rainolf was not yet far enough 
along in his studies to understand it very well, 
and very likely most of the other people in the 
room were in the same case; but he noticed 


44 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


that Charlemagne listened attentively and 
seemed greatly to enjoy it, for he understood 
Latin and liked always to be read to while he 
ate. 

Presently, however, the reading and dinner 
both came to an end; the latter finishing with 
large baskets of apples and cherries which were 
passed around to every one. 

When the King left the hall it was to go, as 
usual, straight upstairs to his sleeping-room 
where he took off his clothes and went to bed 
for a couple of hours. Charlemagne counted 
much on this after-dinner nap, for his life was 
busy and full of care and he was but a poor 
sleeper at night. So hush, everybody ! 


CHAPTER V 


MALAGIS AND THE BOYS 

“ Rainolf,” said Aymon as the two boys 
went out into the courtyard after they had had 
their dinner, “ while the King is sleeping, let’s 
get the other boys and go over to the forest 
and see if there is anything in our rabbit 
snares.” 

“All right!” said Rainolf, and soon the 
group of pages left the palace and crossing a 
few open meadows came to the edge of the 
great wild forest that stretched on and on, no- 
body knew how far. 

Here the boys scattered for awhile hunting 
the traps which several of them had placed 
there. But the little forest creatures had all 
been too wary for them and none had been 
caught. So by and by, answering Rainolf’s 


45 


46 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


halloo, they all came out and, as the air was 
heavy and warm under the dense boughs, were 
glad to throw themselves on the grass beneath 
a great oak tree which stood near a bubbling 
spring. This spring was thought to have mir- 
aculous power, but many people who visited it 
were afraid of witches and fairies whom they 
thought lived in the forest beyond; so as 
charms against these they often brought little 
silver trinkets, a number of which dangled from 
the boughs of the oak. The spot was a fav- 
orite lounging place for the boys, and this time 
they found some one ahead of them. 

“Look!” said Aymon, “There’s Malagis! 
I wonder if he thinks he can straighten his 
crooked foot by hanging it in the spring? ” 

“Tut! Tut! ” said Malagis, who had heard 
them, “ I’m not so silly! I’m just poking up 
these bubbles with my toes to see if there are 
really fairies playing ball with them as some 
people say.” 


MALAGIS AND THE BOYS 


47 


“ You had better be careful,” said Aymon 
seriously, “ They might not like your im- 
pudence.” 

“Pshaw!” retorted Malagis, taking care 
however to remove his foot, “ I’m not afraid of 
fairies, — or witches either ! ” he added loftily. 
u I guess I know a few spoils myself.” 

Here the boys looked at him respectfully and 
with some awe; for while he liked to chaff with 
them and allowed them to be very familiar with 
him, nevertheless everybody declared Malagis 
was a master of magic arts. 

“ Well,” said one of the boys, after a pause, 
“ maybe the King will let you work your spells, 
because you’re his dwarf; but I heard one of 
the officers of the palace say the other day that 
Charlemagne had made a new law forbidding 
anybody to practice witchcraft.” 

At this Malagis looked very wise, but merely 
said, u That doesn’t hurt me any. I’m not a 
witch! Though there are plenty of them in 


48 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


yonder forest!’’ and he nodded his head to- 
ward the dark trees behind them. 

The boys shivered a little and drew closer 
together; for most people then believed in 
witches gnd fairies and dragons, too, for that 
matter. ,. |ylore than once it had been whis- 
pered thaT jjrebrei? thing dragons were to be 
found in some of the rocky caverns hidden 
among the trees. 

“ Malagis,” said Rainolf, as he peered into 
its shadows, “ how far does the forest reach? ” 

“ Oh,” answered the dwarf vaguely, “ ever 
and- ever and ever so far ! Leagues and 
league and leagues; I dare say it’s part of the 
big forest where Charlemagne overthrew the 
Irmlftiiul.” 

“ What was that? ” asked one of the other 
boys. 

“ Why,” said Malagis, “ it was the special 
idol of the Saxon folks. You know they are 
the wild heathen tribes up north of here that 


MALAGIS AND THE BOYS 


49 


tie their hair up in top-knots and carry great 
wooden clubs, and that Charlemagne has been 
fighting for years and years trying to conquer 
and make Christians of.” 

“ Well, the thing they called the Irminsul 
was a big wooden pillar set up in a certain 
place in the forest and on top of it was an 
image of a man wearing a helmet and carrying a 
shield with a bear and lion carved on it. There 
were great treasures of gold and jewels at the 
foot of the pillar, offerings from the Saxons; 
for the Irminsul was their most sacred 
idol.” 

“ And did you say Charlemagne threw it 
over? ” put in Aymon. 

“ Indeed he did 1 ” answered Malagis. “ He 
marched up there with his army and hunted 
through the forest till he found where it was. 
Of course the Saxons rushed out all ready to 
fight, but then they felt sure the idol would do 
something terrible to the King and save them 


50 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


the trouble. So they stood around waiting for 
it to happen.” 

“ But that didn’t bother Charlemagne a bit. 
He defied them. And then instead of the 
Irminsul doing anything, he simply walked up 
to it and knocked it over and smash! down it 
tumbled and broke all to pieces! After that 
he burned up the wooden pillar and took the 
treasures and divided them among his bravest 
captains.” 

“ What did the Saxons say to that? ” asked 
Rainolf. 

“ Well,” said Malagis, “ at first they were 
stunned; but they still had hopes of revenge. 
For it seems the King’s army had had to march 
a long way without any water, and the Saxons 
saw the Franks were half dead from thirst and 
thought they would all die entirely in a few 
minutes and that that was the way the Irminsul 
meant to punish them.” 

“ But, bless your heart,” went on Malagis 


MALAGIS AND THE BOYS 


51 


chuckling, “ just then along came a big black 
cloud and when it got right over Charlemagne’s 
army what did it do but burst and pour down 
buckets and buckets-full of water, so they had 
all they could drink and more, too ! When the 
Saxons saw that, they were as meek as could be 
and all said they would submit to the King and 
be Christians. And there were so many that 
it kept Archbishop Turpin and all the priests 
who were along with Charlemagne busy for 
three days baptizing them. Of course more of 
the heathen ones keep cropping up now and 
then for the King to fight, but he has them 
very well under control now.” 

“ The King is surely a great warrior ! ” said 
Rainolf. 

“ Yes,” said Malagis, “ but he’s greater still 
at making good laws and seeing that people 
mind them. He’s great on learning, too. 
That’s why, years ago, he sent all the way to 
Britain for Master Alcuin to come over and 


52 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


start the palace school; he wanted his children 
and everybody’s children to learn something. 
You boys are lucky to have Master Alcuin teach 
you awhile, for he is a famous scholar.” 

“Why, won’t he teach us all the time?” 
asked Rainolf. 

“ No,” said Aymon, “ didn’t I tell you that 
three years ago the King gave him the Abbey 
at Tours and he has started another big school 
there? ” 

“ Yes,” said Malagis, “ he is just here now 
because the King wanted to consult him about 
something.” 

“Who will teach us when he goes back?” 
again asked Rainolf. 

“ Probably that big sandy-haired monk who 
sat to-day near Master Einhard,” said Mal- 
agis, “ Did you notice him? ” 

“ No,” said Rainolf, who had been rather 
bewildered by the number of grown people in 
the school. 


MALAGIS AND THE BOYS 


53 


“ Well,” said Malagis, who was in a talk- 
ative mood, “ it’s funny how he got here. One 
day, about two years ago, I was going along the 
street in Aachen, and when I came to the mar- 
ket-place there on a bench stood that monk and 
another one like him, both Scotch though they 
had come here from Ireland. They were both 
crying out at the top of their lungs, 1 Knowl- 
edge to sell! Knowledge to sell! Who’ll 
buy ? ’ for all the world like a couple of fish- 
mongers.” 

“ I thought it so odd, that when I got back 
to the palace I told Charlemagne and he 
sent for them to come to him. He asked 
them if it was true they were trying to hawk 
knowledge as if it were a brace of pigeons, 
and they said yes, it was; that they had 
first-rate knowledge to sell to the highest bid- 
der. The King was pleased with them, 
and amused, too, I think. Anyway, he en- 
gaged them for teachers, and they proved to 


54 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


be fine. One of them is off now starting more 
schools.” 

“Does Master Einhard teach?” asked 
Rainolf, who wanted to know who everybody 
was. 

“ No,” said Malagis, “ he has about all he 
can do as the King’s scribe; though he is a 
mighty good minnesinger besides and often 
sings in the evenings. He was taught in the 
palace school with the King’s children and al- 
ways stood so high in his studies that Charle- 
magne noticed him and has shown him great 
favor.” 

“ You were lucky, boy,” continued the dwarf, 
eying Rainolf shrewdly, “ to attract the King’s 
attention to-day. It’s the good scholars that 
always get his help. Do you know what he 
did not long ago? ” 

“ No,” said Rainolf wonderingly. 

“ I will tell you,” said Malagis, clasping his 
hands around his knees on which he rested his 



u 




MALAGIS PURSED UP HIS LIPS AND SMILED 








MALAGIS AND THE BOYS 


55 


peaked chin. “ He was on his way home from 
the town of Paderborn and stopped for dinner 
at the monastery of Saint Martin, and after 
dinner went in to look at the monastery school. 
About half the children there came from noble 
families and lived in castles, and the rest were 
just poor children from the village of Saint 
Martin. The King began asking questions, 
and it seems all the noble children had been 
spending their time playing and paying no atten- 
tion to the monks ; so just about all the answers 
he got came from the poor children who were 
used to minding and did what they were told 
and studied their books. 

“ Charlemagne was very angry. He quickly 
sorted out all the poor children and put them 
at his right hand and praised them and spoke 
kindly to them. And then he turned around 
and if he didn’t give those noble children the 
worst lecture they ever got! ” 

Here Malagis pursed up his lips and smiled 


56 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


as he went on, “ He told them they would be 
terribly fooled if they thought because their 
fathers were noblemen they could have honors 
whether they knew anything or not. He said 
he would show his favor to the people who were 
learning things, no matter how poor they were, 
and if those noble children expected to get any- 
thing from him they would have to start in and 
do some studying.’’ 

Here some of the boys who had not been 
getting on much at the palace school, began to 
look very uncomfortable, and one of them 
hastened to change the subject. “ Mal- 
agis,” he said, pointing to one of the high 
towers of the palace not far away, “ is that 
really a brazen eagle there on top of the 
tower? It is so high up I can’t see it very 
well.” 

“ And,” said another boy, “ is it true that 
sometimes it turns by magic, and that then the 
King knows that he is needed in whatever part 


MALAGIS AND THE BOYS 


57 


of his kingdom the eagle seems to look 
toward? ” 

“ Yes,’ 5 answered Malagis gravely, “ it is 
quite true. I helped to place that eagle my- 
self!” and he wagged his head proudly. 
“You just keep watch of it,” — here Malagis 
crumpled his claw-like hands into a sort of fun- 
nel through which his keen eyes peered at the 
eagle as he went on slowly, — “ it’s beginning 
now to turn — just the least — little tiny bit — 
to the south ! ” 

“ What does that mean? ” asked the boys 
eagerly. “What is south of here?” For 
none of them knew much geography; nor did 
anybody else, for that matter. You would 
have laughed to see their maps and wondered 
how anyone found his way about at all. 

“ Hm,” said Malagis sagely, “ there is a 
great deal south of us. There is Burgundy and 
Africa and Spain and a great deal of Asia and 
the kingdom of Prester John,” — which most 


58 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


people thought was a wonderful place, some- 
where to the southeast, where there were red 
and blue lions and many marvelous things. So 
Malagis supposed he was telling the truth, as 
also about Asia ; but then he came back to facts 
when he added, “ Yes, and there’s Italy and 
Rome where the Pope lives. I wouldn’t won- 
der if the eagle is going to mean Italy.” 

Here a little group of Aachen folk came 
bringing a blind man to the spring so that he 
might bathe his eyes in its miraculous waters. 
And the boys and Malagis slowly strolled off 
toward the palace. 






































































































CHAPTER VI 


A BOAR HUNT AND A MUSIC LESSON 

It was the day of the great boar hunt for 
which spears and knives had been sharpening 
for at least a week. Everybody had been up 
since dawn and the palace courtyard rang with 
the neighing of horses and the baying of hounds. 

Presently the king appeared, his blue eyes 
sparkling and eager; for hunting was his 
favorite sport. Indeed, the great wild forest 
full of wild beasts to be chased was, next to the 
warm springs, the chief reason why he had built 
his finest palace at the edge of Aachen. 

Soon Charlemagne had mounted a splendid 
black horse which had been pawing the ground 
impatiently as a young Frankish noble clung 
to the bronze chains which served for bridle 
and which he now handed over to the King as 


59 


60 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


the latter arranged himself on the handsomely 
carved leather saddle. He was dressed as 
usual, save that stuck through his sword-belt 
shone a long knife with a jeweled handle, 
while slung over one shoulder was a silver chain 
from which hung his hunting horn. It was 
made from the horn of an ox, the broad end 
being finished with a band of silver on which 
were chased hounds running at full speed. 

The young Frank next handed the King a 
long, polished boar-spear, and at this signal all 
the other huntsmen sprang to their saddles, 
seized their spears from the attendants, the 
packs of hounds were turned loose, and Clatter ! 
Clatter ! Clatter ! Thud ! Thud ! Thud ! Bow- 
wow! Wow-wow-wow! Brrh-rrh! off they 
rushed toward the great forest. 

On, on they pelted, across the meadows, 
toward the tall trees; and once within their 
shadows little they cared whether witch or fairy 
crossed their path. For the one thought of all 


A BOAR HUNT 


61 


those headlong huntsmen was for their bellow- 
ing hounds to start up some one of the fierce 
wild boars from his forest lair, so that they 
might chase him as with quivering bristles and 
red burning eyes he flew before them. 

As Rainolf and the other boys, who had been 
in the courtyard watching the hunt start, heard 
the last echoes die away in the forest they all 
sighed enviously, and “ Oh,” said Rainolf, 
“ don’t I wish they’d have let us go 
along! ” 

All the rest felt quite the same way about it ; 
for they had been taught to ride and could shoot 
very well with their bows and arrows, though, 
of course, they could not handle spears as yet. 
As they turned around with long faces, they 
were only half consoled when Aymon said, 
“ Well, one comfort, Master Alcuin says we are 
to have a half holiday and need only take our 
singing lesson over in the cathedral.” 

So in a little while they all went over to the 


62 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


great cathedral which the King had caused to 
be built near the palace. It was very beau- 
tiful, being patterned after one Charlemagne 
had seen in Italy; and, as for the palace, he had 
brought wonderful Italian marbles and mosaics 
for it. Inside, in the place for the choir, was 
a carved wooden rack which held a very large 
parchment book. Its open pages were covered 
with bars of music made big enough so a num- 
ber of singers could stand in front of it and yet 
be able to see the notes; for books were too 
scarce for everybody to have one. 

When the boys entered the cathedral a row 
of men were already ranged in front of the 
choir book, among them Master Einhard, who 
smiled at Rainolf and made room for him 
beside himself as the other boys took their 
places behind, peering at the book as best they 
could. Facing them all stood the black-eyed 
teacher whom Charlemagne had brought from 
Italy to show the Frankish singers how properly 


A BOAR HUNT 


63 


to chant the church service and also to instruct 
the children in music. 

As now the Italian beat time with one hand 
and sang “ do-re-mi-fa,” he frowned at the 
untrained voices of the Franks; that is, all but 
Master Einhard and Rainolf. These two had 
very sweet voices which blended well together; 
and as Rainolf stood beside Master Einhard he 
felt that he would rather sing beautifully than 
to do almost anything else, and he wondered 
if this was what Master Leobard meant when 
he said there would be something he would 
care more for than being a warrior. “Yes,” 
he said to himself, “ if I could only sing and 
make up songs of my own like Master Einhard 
does! And I will some day! ” For, as Rain- 
olf sang, a power began to waken within him. 

Meantime, the Italian teacher fairly wrung 
his hands as the other singers went on do-re-mi- 
fa-ing without the least idea how badly they 
were doing it. And soon another sound arose 


64 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


which was almost as bad as their singing. It 
was the cathedral organ, which a young Frank 
was playing while another strapping youth 
puffed and panted as he worked a large bellows 
by which he forced the air into its few brass 
pipes. The keys were wide and heavy, and the 
young Frank in front of them struck each one 
a resounding blow with his fist, as that was the 
only way anybody could play on them. 

Nevertheless, this organ, which was the first 
any of the Frankish people had seen, was con- 
sidered very wonderful indeed, and had been 
sent all the way from Constantinople as a 
present from the Greek emperor. And only 
the Sunday before, a noble Frankish lady had 
actually fainted from sheer joy at hearing so 
marvelous a musical instrument! So, you see, 
you really had better not laugh at it nor at the 
young Frank cheerfully pounding away with 
both fists. 

The choir singers and the boys listened to 


A BOAR HUNT 


65 


the organ with great respect, as they had been 
taught, and supposed of course it must be very 
grand. Still, most of them felt relieved when 
the music lesson was over and they went out 
into the quiet morning air. 

In the cathedral porch was a stone seat; and 
here as the boys passed along they saw Malagis 
curled up beside an old man wrapped in a long 
mantle and holding on his knees a musical 
instrument which looked something like a fiddle. 

“ I wonder where Malagis picked up that 
minnesinger? ” whispered Rainolf to Aymon. 

But here the dwarf greeted the boys with a 
laugh. “Hey!” he cried. “We have been 
listening to your squawking, — all but Rainolf 
there, — he sings fairly well, — but as for 
the rest of you I thought some angry cats had 
climbed in at the windows and were fighting it 
out inside I But my friend here says he knows 
that Italian teacher of yours and that he is so 
fine that no matter how badly you bellow now, 


66 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 

by and by you will all sing like a parcel of blue- 
birds. So cheer up ! ” 

The old man, who had a gentle face, smiled 
at the speech of Malagis, and “ Come, friend 
minstrel,’’ said the dwarf, “ sing us another 
song, like you sang to me a while ago, and show 
the youngsters what singing is ! ” 

The boys crowded eagerly around, for every- 
body delighted in these wandering minstrels, or 
minnesingers as they were often called, and 
whose songs usually told some story, thus tak- 
ing the place of story books which nobody had 
then. 

The singer was from the southern part of 
Gaul, where they were better trained than in 
the ruder parts of the kingdom, and they all 
listened with pleasure as he touched the strings 
of his instrument and sang several song-stories 
in a voice still sweet and mellow, though he was 
no longer young. 

Presently, after he had paused to rest awhile, 


A BOAR HUNT 


67 


“Won’t you sing us another, sir minstrel?” 
begged Rainolf. 

“I am a little tired, lad,” answered the 
minstrel, “ for before I fell in with your friend 
Malagis here, I had been practicing my song 
about Roland and the battle of Roncesvalles, 
which is my most difficult piece.” 

“ Well,” said Malagis, pursing his lips and 
shaking his head, “ you had better leave that 
out of your list, my friend, if you want to sing 
in the palace before King Charlemagne, as I 
believe you said you did.” 

“ Why,” said the minstrel with a disap- 
pointed look, “ it is my best song, and I thought 
he would like it. It is a favorite subject with 
the minnesingers where I come from. The 
Pass of Roncesvalles is not so very far from my 
home.” 

“ That may be,” said Malagis firmly, “ but 
you don’t know the King. He has never gotten 
over the loss of his nephew Roland and all the 


68 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


brave Paladins with him, and has never been 
quite the same since that battle. So I advise 
you to choose some other subject for him.” 

“ But, sir minstrel,” put in one of the boys, 
“ won’t you tell us the story? We won’t ask 
you to sing it if you are tired, but just tell it. 
Of course we’ve heard of Roland and the Pass 
of Roncesvalles, but we’d like to hear what you 
have to say about it.” 

But the story will make a chapter all to itself. 


CHAPTER VII 


THE MINNESINGER TELLS OF ROLAND 

“ I dare say,” began the minstrel, “ you 
know it all happened more than twenty years 
ago. King Charlemagne with a great army 
had gone down to Spain to fight the Saracens 
there, who were heathens ruled by the Emir 
Marsilius. With Charlemagne were his twelve 
Paladins, the noblest and bravest knights of the 
realm ; and among them the bravest of all was 
young Roland, the King’s nephew.” 

“Did you see Roland, sir?” asked Rainolf 
eagerly. “ Malagis remembers him and says 
he was the handsomest knight he ever saw, and 
that he had more adventures than anybody else 
and had even spent a while in fairyland! ” To 
which Malagis gravely nodded his head. 

“ Why, yes,” said the minstrel, with a rather 


69 


70 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


bewildered look, “ I didn’t know about his 
being in fairyland, but maybe he had, for every- 
body said he had had a wonderful life. I saw 
the whole army as it went by on the way to 
Spain; for my home is near the Pyrenees Moun- 
tains which divide Spain from Gaul. It was a 
great sight, the King in his iron armor riding 
a prancing war-horse and carrying a huge lance, 
and following him thousands of soldiers with 
spears and shields and banners and trumpets. 
The twelve Paladins rode together, Roland 
side by side with Oliver, his brother-in- 
arms.” 

“ Malagis said they had been best friends 
ever since they were little boys ! ” said Aymon. 

“ True,” said the minstrel, “ and a noble pair 
they were. Hanging from Roland’s shoulder 
by a golden chain I saw the gleam of his ivory 
horn Olivant. I suppose you know about 
that? ” and the minstrel paused inquiringly. 

“ O yes! ” cried several of the boys. “ It 


MINNESINGER TELLS OF ROLAND 71 


was the magic horn that had belonged to the 
King’s grandfather, Charles the Hammer. It 
was made of the tooth of a sea-horse and all 
set thick with precious stones. After Charles 
the Hammer died nobody, not even King 
Charlemagne, could make the horn blow till 
Roland tried it one day and then it blew so loud 
that they heard it all the way from Aachen to 
Paris! So the King gave it to Roland.” 

“Good!” said the minstrel, while Malagis 
nodded approvingly. “ And I suppose it’s no 
use to tell you about his sword Durandal, 
either?” 

“Yes,” said the boys, “we know the King 
gave that to Roland too, and it was one Trojan 
Hector wore. It was the sharpest sword in the 
world.” 

“ Was it any finer than King Charlemagne’s 
sword? ” asked Rainolf. “ Isn’t Joyeuse very 
wonderful? ” 

“ Joyeuse is indeed a wonderful sword,” 


72 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


answered Malagis. “ Folks say that forged 
in it is the tip of the spear that pierced our 
Saviour’s side. I don’t know whether that is so 
or not, but it is a very terrible weapon. 
Though, for that matter,” he added, “ any 
weapon would be terrible enough in the hands 
of King Charlemagne. But,” he said turning 
to the minstrel, “ go on with your tale. It 
agrees very well with what I have always told 
these youngsters here.” 

“ So,” went on the minstrel, “ Charlemagne 
crossed the Pyrenees and marched into Spain. 
After some very hard fighting he captured a 
number of Saracen cities, and in one of them, 
Cordova, he decided to rest awhile. While he 
was there messengers came from the Emir 
saying their master was anxious for peace, and 
that if the Franks would go back to Gaul, Mar- 
silius would soon come to Aachen and swear 
homage to Charlemagne and be baptized as a 
Christian. He offered rich presents as pledges 


MINNESINGER TELLS OF ROLAND 73 


of his good faith if the King would send a 
favorable answer. 

“ When Charlemagne asked the Paladins 
what they thought about it, all but Roland and 
Oliver advised him to make peace.” 

“ You haven’t said anything about Ganelon, 
the traitor, sir ! ” said Rainolf. 

“ Give me time, lad! ” replied the minstrel. 
“ I was just coming to him. I suppose you 
know he was the one the King sent back with 
the messengers to say he would make peace and 
to receive the pledges from Marsilius; though, 
of course, Charlemagne had no idea how false- 
hearted Ganelon was.” 

“ And Ganelon hated Roland, too, didn’t 
he ? ” interrupted one of the boys. 

“ Yes,” said the minstrel, “ he was a miser- 
able traitor; and when he went to the Emir and 
Marsilius offered him a sum of gold if he would 
help plan how to destroy Charlemagne’s army, 
he eagerly agreed. Though he knew Marsilius 


74 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


could never conquer the whole army, he showed 
him how he might trap a part of it in which 
would be Roland and most of the bravest 
knights. 

“ Then he went back to Cordova with the 
rich presents from the Emir and told the King 
everything was all right and Marsilius would 
do as he promised. 

“ So Charlemagne started back to Gaul. 
He did not expect any trouble, but, as every 
wise commander does on leaving a country 
where enemies might be lurking, he placed a 
strong guard at the back of his army. In this 
rear guard were the good Archbishop Turpin, 
who was as good a fighter as a bishop, the 
Paladins, and twenty thousand fighting men, all 
led by Roland. 

u After several days’ marching, King Charle- 
magne leading the main army climbed over the 
rocky peaks of the Pyrenees and entered Gaul; 
only the rear guard was still making its way 


MINNESINGER TELLS OF ROLAND 75 


through the mountain valleys and steep narrow 
passes.” 

“ Then they heard the Saracens 1 trumpets ! ” 
broke in one of the boys; for they all knew the 
story and always grew excited in the telling. 

u Yes,” said the minstrel, 44 all at once they 
heard a terrible blast of trumpets, and Oliver 
sprang from his horse and climbed to the top 
of a tall pine tree to try to see where the enemy 
was. He looked in all directions, and then he 
came down and said that never had he seen so 
great a host of Saracens ! Their bright spears 
were gleaming on all sides; for, as Ganelon had 
planned, they had followed the rear guard and 
trapped them in the narrowest pass of the Pyre- 
nees where it would be hardest for the Franks 
to defend themslves.” 

44 We know ! ” cried Aymon. “ It was the 
Pass of Roncesvalles ! ” — which means in our 
language the Valley of Thorns, and remember 
this; for everybody nowadays is expected to 


76 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


know about Roland and the Valley of Thorns 
just as much as those boys listening to the 
old minstrel over eleven hundred years 
ago. 

“ In a moment,” went on the minstrel, u they 
heard the trumpets sounding nearer; and then 
Oliver, who had seen that the Saracens out- 
numbered the rear guard at least ten to one, 
begged Roland to blow his wonderful horn 
Olivant so that King Charlemagne might hear 
and come back to help them.” 

“ But Roland was too brave ! ” exclaimed 
Rainolf. 

“ True,” said the minstrel, “ he was too 
brave and proud, and scorned to blow his 
horn for help against the heathens. Three 
times Oliver begged him, but each time he 
refused. Then the good Archbishop Turpin 
raised his hands and blessed all the men; for 
none of them hoped to escape alive. When he 
had finished, he drew his own sword with the 



u c 


WITH HIS DYING BREATH BLEW A LONG BLAST 





































MINNESINGER TELLS OF ROLAND 77 


rest and soon the Saracens rushed upon them 
and the fight began. Long and terrible was 
the battle, and bravely did the Frankish heroes 
defend themselves; but at length, one by one, 
all had fallen before the spears of the Saracens, 
save only Roland and Oliver and the good 
Archbishop, and they, too, were mortally 
wounded. 

“ Then at last Roland raised Olivant to his 
lips and with his dying breath blew a long blast; 
not hoping for help, for it was now too late, 
but because the Archbishop wished that Charle- 
magne might come and bear their bodies away 
from the wolves and wild beasts. 

The blast echoed through the mountains, 
loud and clear and piercing, till far away in 
Gaul King Charlemagne heard it and knew 
that something terrible had happened, and 
quickly he turned about and hastened back over 
the Pyrenees. He ordered all his trumpeters 
to keep sounding their trumpets so that when 


78 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


they drew near Roland would know they were 
coming. 

“ But the King’s army had far to march, and 
long before it reached the Pass of Roncesvalles 
all lay dead there save Roland. Then he stag- 
gered to his feet, and taking in his hand his 
wonderful sword Durandal, with a last effort 
he struck its blade against a mighty rock.” 

“Why did he do that?” asked Rainolf. 

“ Because,” answered the minstrel, “ he 
thought he would rather destroy Durandal than 
have it fall into the hands of the heathen. But 
instead of Durandal breaking, it was the great 
rock that split, for nothing could turn the edge 
of that magic blade. Four times Roland 
struck with Durandal, but each time bright and 
shining he drew it from a fresh cleft in the 
stone, — and I have seen those clefts myself,” 
declared the minstrel, “ so I know it is true ! 
Then Roland lay down on the grass and plac- 
ing Durandal and Olivant under his body, he 


MINNESINGER TELLS OF ROLAND 79 


held up his right hand to God, and so died the 
hero.” 

Everybody was very still for a few minutes. 
Then presently one of the boys said, “ Malagis 
says that King Charlemagne cried when he 
came back and found Roland and all the brave 
Paladins and everybody dead.” 

“ Indeed he did! ” said Malagis. “ One of 
the soldiers who was with the army told me the 
King cried bitterly. And no wonder ! It was 
a terrible blow to lose all his bravest knights, 
and he was immensely fond of Roland.” 

“ Where did they bury Roland? ” asked the 
minstrel. “ I never quite knew.” 

“ At the Abbey of Blaye,” answered Mala- 
gis. “ Charlemagne had Roland and Oliver 
and the Archbishop laid there in beautiful white 
marble tombs.” 

“ Please,” inquired Rainolf, “ what became 
of Durandal and Olivant? ” 

“ Well,” said Malagis slowly, “ the King 


80 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


took the horn Olivant and filled it with gold and 
sent it to the church at Bordeaux where it may 
be seen in front of the altar.” 

“And Durandal? ” again asked Rainolf. 

But Malagis, who did not know about the 
end of Durandal (nor does anybody else), pre- 
tended not to hear; and jumping down from the 
stone seat, “ Upon my word ! ” he cried. 
“ Why, it is past dinner time ! Come on, sir 
minstrel, and try the palace fare. The King 
will give you welcome when the hunt is 
over.” 

So they all went over to the palace ; and late 
in the day the hunters rode back with two great 
boars. These had fought viciously when 
brought to bay, and killed three hounds with 
their sharp tusks and badly wounded one of the 
huntsmen; so the hunt was considered to have 
been a great success. King Charlemagne was 
in high spirits, and after supper everybody 
went into the palace hall where they listened to 


MINNESINGER TELLS OF ROLAND 81 


the minstrel as he sang his song-stories. The 
King praised him much, for heeding the advice 
of Malagis, he was wise enough to leave out the 
one about Roland. 


CHAPTER VIII 


PRESENTS FOR THE KING 

One afternoon late in the summer all the 
children of Aachen were racing and chasing 
through its crooked streets and looking eagerly 
down the long road beyond that stretched away 
to the south. Even the grown folks were 
coming to their doors and standing as if they 
expected to see something. 

Soon Rainolf and the palace pages came 
hurrying along, and as they passed a black- 
beamed house where an old man was blinking 
at the window, “ Master Leobard,” said Rain- 
olf, “ do you know when they are coming? ” 

“ No, lad,” answered the old astrologer, 
“ but the stars say the King is to receive a 
present soon, so I dare say it will be along by 
and by.” And muttering to himself he went 


82 


PRESENTS FOR THE KING 


83 


back to tending a fire in a queer earthen stove 
where in some curious vessels he was trying, as 
did many people then, to make gold out of 
something else and, of course, not succeeding. 

u Master Leobard says the stars told him,” 
laughed one of the boys, “ but maybe the run- 
ner that came to the palace last night had 
fresher news.” 

“Where did that runner come from?” 
asked another. 

“ I think from the nearest town south of 
here,” said Aymon. “ You know he came to 
tell the King some people are on the way here 
bringing him something, I didn’t hear what.” 

“ I guess he told all the town folks, too,” said 
Rainolf, “ from the way they are on the look- 
out!” 

By this time they had come to the edge of 
Aachen. “ Let’s go down the road a piece,” 
said Aymon. “ Surely they will have to come 
this way.” 


84 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


So on they loitered past little thatched huts 
here and there in the fields, where the peasant 
folk lived. Presently, “Pm thirsty! ” said 
one of the boys; “ let’s go over to that hut and 
get a drink.” 

When they reached it and looked in at the 
door a gust of smoke blew in their faces from 
an open fire on the bare earthen floor. Over 
this was an iron pot full of thin soup which a 
woman was stirring with one hand as she held 
in her arms a shock-headed baby dressed in 
homespun. At one side of the room were two 
or three wooden troughs filled with straw which 
were the family beds. In the middle of the 
floor a block of wood made from the stump of 
a tree did for table and came handy also when 
they needed to cut bread, which was always so 
coarse and hard that when they wanted any the 
father usually had to chop off pieces with 
his ax. 

When the boys asked the woman for a 


PRESENTS FOR THE KING 


85 


drink, she handed them a gourd and pointed 
toward a tree in a near-by field; and scamper- 
ing over there they found a spring of 
good water. When they returned the gourd, 
“ Aren’t you going over to the road? ” asked 
Aymon. 

But she only stared at him without answer- 
ing. For the Frankish peasants knew but little 
beyond ploughing the fields with their rude 
ploughs and toiling for a bare living. And the 
hut was not poorer than most of the others 
dotting the country. 

But the boys had already hurried off, for 
“Look!” cried Rainolf, pointing down the 
road, “ there they come ! ” 

Sure enough, a number of people were com- 
ing toward them. Some were riding spirited 
Arabian horses and some walking, all had black 
eyes and hair, quite different from the Franks, 
and all had on large turbans and flowing robes 
such as people wear in the Far East. Some 


86 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


were leading pack-horses with bulging saddle- 
bags, but in the midst of them came the most 
amazing thing of all! It was a huge animal 
with a wrinkly gray skin, wide flapping ears, lit- 
tle shrewd black eyes, and thick legs with toes 
like the scallops of an enormous pinking-iron 
— but hear the boys, 

“ Do look at that outlandish beast! ” 

“ What on earth do you suppose it is? ” 

“ Is that a tail hanging where its mouth 
belongs? Look! Look! how it keeps curling 
it up and poking it around! ” 

“ My, but that’s a grand red seat on its 
back!” 

“ Wouldn’t you think that man with the queer 
clothes would tumble out? See how it rocks 
when the beast walks! ” 

“ Do you think the man is guiding it with that 
long wand, or do you suppose he is a magi- 
cian?” 

“ Pshaw! ” you say. “Why, it was just a 


PRESENTS FOR THE KING 


87 


circus procession, and didn’t those silly boys 
know an elephant when they saw it? ” 

Well, you are quite mistaken; for it was no 
circus procession even if there was an elephant 
in it. Indeed, none of the Franks had ever 
heard of such a thing as a circus; while as for 
elephants, most of them would have been far 
less surprised if a dragon had come flying out 
of the forest, for they knew much more about 
dragons — or thought they did. 

No, the people coming along the road were 
messengers from Haroun-al-Raschid, the great 
Caliph of Bagdad, ever and ever so far away in 
Asia. (If you have read your Arabian Nights 
stories you know all about the great Caliph; 
and, if you don’t know, you had best hurry up 
and find out.) Now, Haroun-al-Raschid and 
the mighty Charlemagne, though they had 
never met, were very good friends and admired 
each other greatly. Some time before, the 
King had sent messengers bearing handsome 


88 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


presents and good wishes to the Caliph. It 
had taken over three years to reach Bagdad, for 
it was then a long and dangerous journey; 
while they were there the Caliph, who wished 
after a while to send gifts in return, asked 
them what they thought the King would like, 
and they said they knew one thing Charle- 
magne wanted dreadfully and that was an ele- 
phant. 

So, by and by, when Haroun-al-Raschid sent 
his own messengers to bear presents and his 
good wishes to the King, he remembered about 
the elephant and took care to send an extra big 
fine one. And at last, after a long long 
journey, here it was tramping along the road 
almost to Aachen ! 

Of course the boys all ran along behind as 
the procession wound through the town, the 
strangers looking curiously about, the Arab 
horses daintily picking their way over the rough 
stones, and the elephant lumbering steadily 


PRESENTS FOR THE KING 


89 


along and all the while peering around with his 
sharp little eyes. 

And how the town folks said, “Oh!” and 
“Ah! ” and “What do you think that queer 
animal is? ” till they reached the palace where 
the strangers dismounted in the courtyard. 
They unpacked the bulging saddle-bags which 
were full of presents, and with these in their 
arms they were taken to the great hall of the 
palace where Charlemagne received them with 
kindness and honor. And soon he himself 
came out to see the wonderful elephant, which 
seemed to delight him more than anything else. 

The boys stayed around as close as they 
dared, and, when presently, the elephant was 
led off to a special stall in the royal stables, they 
followed. 

“ What a magnificent embroidered cloth that 
is hanging over his back! ” said Rainolf. 

“ Yes,” said another boy, “ those pearls and 
jewels sewed on it must have cost a lot! ” 


90 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


“ How do you suppose he eats, with that 
queer tail on his mouth ?” said Aymon. 
“ Let’s watch what they feed him.” 

And they had great fun seeing everything 
that was done for him and getting acquainted 
with the Bagdad elephant, who was to live in 
Aachen for nine years and be the chief pride of 
Charlemagne in all the royal processions of the 
time. He was even to go to war with him and 
carry the King’s own baggage on his broad 
back. 

Meantime, while the boys were off in the 
stables, the other rich presents sent by the 
Caliph were being displayed and discussed by 
everybody. 

“ Have you seen the wonderful clock? ” said 
one to another. 

“ No, what is a clock? ” 

“ It is something that tells the time of day! ” 

“ Is it anything like our sun-dials or hour- 
glasses? ” 


PRESENTS FOR THE KING 


91 


“Not a bit! It is a kind of machine that 
runs by water. It is shaped like a tower with 
twelve windows, and they say that each hour 
the windows open and bronze horsemen ride 
out and then ride in again! ” 

“ How wonderful! ” 

“ Yes, and there are splendid silks and gold 
embroideries, too, for the Queen and Prin- 
cesses ! ” 

“ And such beautiful chess-men for the King 
to play with ! They are men riding on animals 
like the one that came to-day and are all carved 
from ivory! ” 

“ Oh, yes, and a wonderful silk tent, too ! 
Big enough for dozens of men, but so fine I 
believe you could squeeze it up and carry it in 
your fist! ” 

So the tongues wagged, and, you may be 
sure, neither Rainolf nor any of the other boys 
missed seeing a single thing. 


CHAPTER IX 


RAINOLF IN THE WRITING-ROOM 

There was one part of the palace in which 
Rainolf especially delighted, and this was the 
great writing-room. Here, always, were to be 
found a number of monks from the monastery 
by the cathedral who spent their time making 
the most beautiful books. It was chiefly the 
Bible and the works of the older Greek and 
Latin authors which they carefully copied out 
by hand so more people might read them. 
And all the while they were learning more and 
more how to decorate and make them beautiful 
with gold and color. 

The King admired these beautiful painted 
books above all things, and in every way 
encouraged the monks to make them finer and 
finer. And they grew so skillful all over his 


92 


RAINOLF IN THE WRITING-ROOM 93 


kingdom that the painted, or illuminated books, 
as they were called, which were made during 
the reign of Charlemagne are still treasured 
and admired by everybody. 

Rainolf used to spend an hour or two every 
day in this writing-room, for one of the monks, 
Brother Coplas, was teaching him to write, and 
he hoped some day to learn to paint also, for 
he longed to make a beautiful book all himself. 
And down in his heart he looked forward to the 
day when one of the books he made would be 
filled with his own songs. For all the while 
Master Einhard was helping him with his music 
and even encouraging him to make up little 
songs to sing. 

Rainolf was thinking of this as he was busy 
at work in the writing-room a few days after 
the coming of the Caliph’s messengers, when 
the door opened and in came the King. With 
him were two of the Bagdad strangers whom 
he had brought to see the writing-room, of 


94 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


which he was very proud. The visitors looked 
with interest at the queer high desks where the 
monks were working, at the rolls of parchment 
and the paints and gold and colored inks and 
goose-quill pens. 

“ Father Willibrod,” said the King to the 
head of the writing-room, “ will you not show 
us some of the finished pages? ” 

Father Willibrod hastened to open a great 
drawer in a desk nearby and displayed a num- 
ber of large pages so beautifully written and 
surrounded by such brilliant and glowing 
borders of birds and flowers with here and 
there pictures on backgrounds of sparkling 
gold all so lovely that the strangers exclaimed 
with admiration and the King smiled with 
pleasure. 

“ Show us some of the covers, too, Father 
Willibrod,” he said. 

And in another drawer they saw covers 
already finished ready for the painted pages. 


RAINOLF IN THE WRITING-ROOM 95 


For the finest books these covers were of 
wrought silver set with precious stones, and 
some of beautifully carved ivory. Others 
were of velvet, which had been embroidered by 
the ladies of the palace; while for the com- 
moner books deer-skin would be used. 

As the party was leaving the room, the King 
passed near the desk where Brother Coplas and 
Rainolf sat side by side. He paused a moment 
looking at the boy’s work and “Good ! ” he 
said, “You are improving, lad,” and then he 
sighed as he added, “ I wish I had had such 
training when my hand was supple as yours ! ” 
As he passed out Brother Coplas whispered 
to Rainolf, “ The King would give anything to 
be able to write and paint books! ” 

“ Why, he can write, can’t he? ” asked Rain- 
clf in surprise. 

“ To be sure,” said Brother Coplas. “ But 
he wants to be able to do it evenly and regu- 
larly as we do in our books. One of his body 


96 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


servants told me he keeps a pen and tablet of 
parchment under his pillow every night, and 
often when he can’t sleep he will get up and 
have a lamp lighted and will practice for a long 
time trying to write beautifully.” 

And this was not so easy, either; for writing 
then was more like printing, each letter being 
made separately, which, of course, was much 
slower than our way of joining them together; 
a simple little trick which no one as yet had 
thought of. 

Before long Rainolf had finished his page, 
and as his fingers were tired he got up and 
strolled around the room, for he loved to look 
at what they were all doing. 

“ Oh, but that is beautiful! ” he exclaimed as 
he stopped by a desk where a monk was writing 
a chapter from the Bible in letters of gold on 
a page of parchment he had stained a rich 
purple. 

“ Master Alcuin says they have nothing finer 



“ A MONK WAS WRITING A CHAPTER FROM THE BIBLE IN 

LETTERS OF GOLD ” 




RAINOLF IN THE WRITING-ROOM 97 


in Tours,” said another brother, who had 
paused to admire the page, “ and in his monas- 
tery they do famous work.” 

“Yes,” said Rainolf, “ Brother Coplas told 
me Master Alcuin is having a wonderful Bible 
made there for the King.” 

“ Why,” he said, as he came to another desk, 
“ I didn’t know you were here, Master Ein- 
hard! What is this you are writing? It isn’t 
Latin!” 

“ No,” answered Master Einhard, who was 
carefully copying on neat pages something 
written on a number of loose scraps. “ It is 
some work I am doing for the King, and I am 
writing it in our own language; for these are 
songs of some of the Frankish minnesingers. 
You know how the King likes songs.” 

“I know he likes yours!” said Rainolf 
warmly. 

“ Perhaps,” said Master Einhard modestly. 
“ But he likes other peoples’, too. Sometimes, 


98 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


when minnesingers come on long winter even- 
ings, he will have the fireplace filled with 
blazing logs and will wrap himself up in a big 
mantle of otter skins and sit up half the night 
listening to them. Some of these men come 
from the wilder parts of the kingdom up north, 
and they know old heathen song-stories that 
have been handed down nobody knows how 
long. The King is wonderfully interested in 
these, and whenever any of those people come 
he gets me to write down the words of the 
stories they sing, and as, of course, I have to 
write very fast, it needs to be copied plainly. 
I have written out ever so many, and the King 
is getting quite a collection.” Here he pointed 
with pride to a pile of pages in a recess of his 
desk. 

As Rainolf passed on, Master Einhard again 
bent over his work; for he could not possibly 
know that twenty years later, when King 
Charlemagne was dead and gone, his stupid son 


RAINOLF IN THE WRITING-ROOM 99 


Louis would one day find those carefully written 
pages and, not dreaming of their value, would 
carelessly toss them in the fire ! 

Heigho ! it is a great pity to be stupid ! 

Meantime, as Rainolf left the writing-room 
and went into the courtyard he almost ran into 
Malagis, who was standing on the toes of his 
good foot and whirling around like a weather- 
cock. 

“Hey, youngster !” he said, “I was just 
taking some exercise. By the way, I have news 
for you. Didn’t your horoscope say you were 
to see something of the world? ” 

“ Yes,” said Rainolf, puzzled. 

“ Well, I guess all of our stars must say the 
same thing, for we are all likely to go travel- 
ing.” 

“How?” asked Rainolf. 

“ Listen! ” answered Malagis, pointing, with 
a wise air, to the highest palace tower. 
“ Didn’t I tell you youngsters a while ago that 


100 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


that big bronze eagle was turning a tiny bit to 
the south? And didn’t I say it meant the King 
would be needed in that direction, most likely 
in Italy? ” 

“ Yes, you did,” answered Rainolf respect- 
fully. 

“ Well,” said Malagis, with a triumphant 
gleam in his strange bright eyes, “ look at it 
now ! ” 

As Rainolf gazed, with an awed expression, 
sure enough, the great bronze bird had veered 
more and more till it seemed to be looking 
straight to the south. 

“ Now, sir,” said Malagis, “ I happen 
to know that the King has received word 
that Pope Leo is in trouble in Rome and 
wants the most powerful king in Chris- 
tendom — of course that’s Charlemagne — 
to come and help him. And the King is 
going, and, as usual, when he can possibly 
manage it, he will take nearly everybody 


RAINOLF IN THE WRITING-ROOM 101 


along. So there ! What did I tell 
you ! ” 

And Malagis again began his whirling, while 
Rainolf stared at the eagle with his head full 
of eager dreams. 


CHAPTER X 


CHRISTMAS DAY OF THE YEAR 800 

It was quite true, as Malagis had said, 
Charlemagne was going to Italy early in the 
autumn and was to take most of his household 
with him. The household, however, was used 
to moving about with the King from palace to 
palace, and even when at war he often took his 
family and the school along. So everybody 
knew just how to arrange things. 

But as this story must end with this very 
chapter, I cannot begin to tell you about all 
these preparations; of the army which, of 
course, must be got ready, of the ox-carts and 
ox-carts full of baggage, of the horses for the 
men to ride, the ponies for the pages and the 
covered wagons with embroidered scarlet cur- 
tains and cushions for the ladies, of the quanti- 


102 


CHRISTMAS DAY OF THE YEAR 800 103 


ties of food, and the thousand and one things 
that must go along when a lot of people set out 
to travel. 

Neither can I stop to tell how they started 
off and all the interesting and wonderful things 
which Rainolf and the palace pages saw as they 
rode along with the great cavalcade. At the 
town of Mainz they crossed the River Rhine 
on a wooden bridge with stone piers, which the 
King had caused to be built a few years before, 
and everybody thought it most remarkable 1 
And no wonder, for it was the only real bridge 
in all the Frankish kingdom; at other places 
they had only boats to cross rivers. 

On, on, they went, always southward; and, 
by and by, up, up, they clambered over the 
towering white peaks of the Alps Mountains, 
round precipices that made Rainolf and his 
companions fairly hold their breath, and then 
at last down, down, into the lovely land of Italy 
with its blue skies and olive and orange trees 


104 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


and its cities with such beautiful castles and 
palaces and churches that again the boys caught 
their breath, but this time with wonder and 
admiration. And you would have gasped, too, 
if you had been a Frankish boy used only to 
Aachen and the wild forests around it, and if 
you had always thought the King’s palace and 
the cathedral the two finest buildings in all the 
world! 

Indeed, Rainolf and the rest of the pages 
found out a great many things on that journey; 
and when they drew near to the ancient city of 
Rome they began to realize what it was to be 
in a country that had been civilized hundreds of 
years before. But we cannot stop to hear all 
the things they did, nor of how at length Pope 
Leo with his bishops and cardinals came to meet 
King Charlemagne and together they entered 
imperial Rome, all the great cavalcade follow- 
ing close behind. 

Rainolf and Aymon and the other boys were 


CHRISTMAS DAY OF THE YEAR 800 105 


quite silent as they rode through the streets of 
the famous city. They had seen so much and 
exclaimed so much on the way, that they had 
used up all the wonder adjectives they knew, 
and Rainolf scarcely answered when Malagis, 
who rode a little piebald pony beside him, poked 
him with his wand with “ Well, boy, Aachen 
will look a bit tame when we go back, hey? ” 

Malagis had been in Rome once before with 
the King, and he now began to point out this 
and that wonderful place, till they reached the 
beautiful marble palace where the King was to 
stay with his family and many of his nobles and 
closest attendants, among these Malagis and 
Rainolf his cup-bearer. Aymon and the other 
boys and the rest of the household were lodged 
in palaces near by. 

It is too bad we have not time to talk about 
the splendid feasts for the King, for they lasted 
for seven days, and at all of them Rainolf stood 
behind his chair, and it is not likely he missed 


106 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


anything that went on. Then, after the feast- 
ing, King Charlemagne set himself to see to the 
matters which had brought him to Rome; and 
the end of it was he delivered Pope Leo from 
the enemies who had been plotting against him. 

By this time it was very near Christmas, and 
this is the great day we have been hurrying up 
to reach; for it was to be a tremendously im- 
portant one in the life of Charlemagne, and, 
indeed, in the history of the world, and we can- 
not possibly finish this story without telling 
about it. 

Very early in the morning everybody in 
Rome crowded toward the great church of 
Saint Peter for the Christmas service. All 
who could, squeezed in, and hundreds and hun- 
dreds, who couldn’t, stood in the large square 
outside. A place within had been reserved for 
the King’s household, or Rainolf, who came 
with Master Einhard and a number of other 
Franks, would never have had a spot to stand. 


CHRISTMAS DAY OF THE YEAR 800 107 


As they made their way through the throng, 
they noticed that the faces of the Roman people 
all showed a curious air of expectancy. There 
seemed to be a feeling everywhere that some- 
thing unusual was going to happen. Rainolf 
felt it, and wondered, as he looked around the 
church which was the most splendid sight 
imaginable. Gold and jewels and mosaics 
glittered everywhere, and between the lofty 
marble columns of the long aisles hung curtains 
of the richest purple velvet which were brought 
out only on the grandest occasions. 

These partly shut out the light gleaming 
dimly through the windows of clouded glass, 
but hundreds of tall wax tapers shone brightly 
and at the eastern end of the church, high over 
the altar, a dazzle of golden light hung from 
golden chains. 

“ Oh, Master Einhard,” whispered Rainolf, 
44 what is that beautiful thing? ” 

44 .That is called the 4 Pharos,’ ” said Master 


108 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


Einhard. “ It is a candelabrum of pure gold, 
and they say it holds three thousand candles. 
I was here once before but I never saw it 
lighted, for it is only for great celebrations. 
Isn’t it splendid! And look at the beautiful 
triumphal arch over it ! I think that is new for 
to-day.” 

Here Rainolf breathed another long “ Oh! ” 
and so did Master Einhard; for just then some 
of the crowd in front of them moved a little so 
they could see between. And there, directly 
under the blazing Pharos and the triumphal 
arch, shone the wonderful shrine of the Apostle 
Peter in whose honor the church had been 
named. The shrine was covered with plates 
of gold and silver and studded with jewels; 
mosaics in all the colors of the rainbow glit- 
tered around it, and on the steps in front of it 
was a majestic kneeling figure. 

For a moment Rainolf stared in silence; then 
turning to Master Einhard with a bewildered 


CHRISTMAS DAY OF THE YEAR 800 109 


look, “ Is it — can it be King Charlemagne? ” 

“ Yes,” replied Master Einhard in a low 
voice, “ it could be no other.” 

It was indeed the King; though no wonder 
Rainolf was puzzled, for instead of wearing the 
familiar Frankish dress, he was clad as a 
Roman noble of the highest rank. A wide 
mantle of pure white wool bordered with royal 
purple covered him with its many folds and 
was held at one shoulder by a jeweled golden 
clasp. On his feet were sandals laced with 
golden cords. 

It was a splendid picture; and as the King 
continued to kneel with bowed head, all eyes 
were fixed upon him, still with that curious look 
of expectancy. In a moment a hush fell every- 
where, for Pope Leo and his attendant priests 
had entered. All wore magnificent robes stiff 
with gold embroidery and precious stones, and 
after them came choir-boys in lace and velvet, 
swinging clouds of sweet incense from beauti- 


110 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


fully jeweled censers, and the solemn mass 
began. 

At a pause in the service, “ Master Ein- 
hard,” whispered Rainolf softly, “what is it? 
I feel as if something great is going to happen.” 
Indeed, this feeling, which had been in the air 
all the morning, seemed to grow stronger with 
everybody. 

“ I do not know,” whispered Master Ein- 
hard slowly, “ but — I believe — King Charle- 
magne will leave this church something dif- 
ferent — ” 

But again the sound of chanting rose and 
fell ; and then, by and by, the last notes, one by 
one, died away, the clouds of fragrant incense 
dissolved faintly in the quiet air, there was a 
moment of intense silence, and then just as King 
Charlemagne was about to rise from his knees, 
suddenly Pope Leo stood before him holding in 
his hands a golden crown. With a swift move- 
ment he placed this on the King’s head, and at 


CHRISTMAS DAY OF THE YEAR 800 111 


the same instant, as if by magic, thousands of 
voices rang out, “To Charles the Augustus, 
crowned of God, the great and pacific Emperor, 
long life and victory ! ” which was the ancient 
greeting with which the Roman people were 
accustomed to hail their Emperors. Then, led 
by Pope Leo, everybody sang a hymn asking 
all the saints to bless the new Emperor, his chil- 
dren and his subjects. 

“What — what does it all mean?” asked 
Rainolf, when he could get his breath for be- 
wilderment. 

“ It means,” slowly answered Master Ein- 
hard, who had been keenly watching everything, 
“ that our Frankish King Charlemagne is now 
also Emperor of the Roman Empire and the 
greatest monarch in all Christendom.” 

“ But,” said Rainolf, still puzzled, “ I 
thought he was the greatest monarch before? ” 

“ Yes,” said Master Einhard, “ he was; and 
what is left of the ancient Roman Empire has 


112 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


for years looked to him to defend it from its 
enemies; yet really to wear the crown as Em- 
peror means a glory and power nothing else 
can quite give. You will understand better by 
and by, lad.” 

As to what King, — no, we forget, — 
Emperor Charlemagne himself thought about it 
all, nobody will ever be quite sure. Perhaps in 
his wisdom he foresaw how for centuries after 
his own time, when the Roman Empire had 
ceased to be either Roman or even an em- 
pire, the kings who followed him would still 
strive to be crowned Emperor as he had been 
and there would be much war and blood- 
shed because of it. Perhaps he dimly guessed 
something of this, for after the coronation was 
over, though he accepted all its responsibility, 
nevertheless he declared that he would never 
have gone to Saint Peter’s Church that Christ- 
mas morning had he known what Pope Leo 
meant to do. 


CHRISTMAS DAY OF THE YEAR 800 113 


But whether he knew about it beforehand or 
not, there he was that Christmas Day of the 
year 800 leaving Saint Peter’s with the Roman 
crown glittering on his head. And having thus 
seen our noble King Charlemagne made into an 
Emperor, our story must end. 

Good-by, Rainolf ! Good-by, Aymon, and 
Malagis and Masters Einhard and Alcuin and 
all the rest ! — And would you really like to 

know what became of some of them? Well, 
Rainolf’s horoscope worked out fairly true. 
When troubles came to him he met them man- 
fully, and always when needed for the Frankish 
wars he proved a good and loyal soldier; but 
always, too, as Master Leobard had said, there 
was something else for which he cared much 
more. It was his songs. And as he grew 
older his voice grew sweeter still, and he and 
Master Einhard together used often to delight 
the Emperor with their singing. Rainolf, by 
and by, became a famous minnesinger, making 


114 OUR LITTLE PRANKISH COUSIN 


up his own beautiful song-stories, and even at 
last fulfilling his boyish wish, he learned to paint 
and write so well that he made a lovely book all 
of his own songs. 

Aymon and the other boys all turned out 
well, too; though none of them made a name 
for himself as did Rainolf. 

Malagis continued to wear the yellow tunic 
of jester and capered good-humoredly through 
life; though long afterward people declared he 
had been a great wizard and minnesingers told 
no end of marvelous stories about him. 

Master Einhard served faithfully as scribe 
as long as Charlemagne lived; and then two 
years later he wrote a life of the Emperor. 
It is not very long, but is so perfectly well 
done that to this day when people want to know 
about him first of all they look to see what 
Master Einhard wrote. 

As for the mighty Charlemagne himself, 
when he died no King or Emperor ever had so 


CHRISTMAS DAY OF THE YEAR 800 115 


wonderful a burial. He was placed in a splen- 
did tomb in the cathedral of Aachen, seated on 
a marble throne, arrayed in the magnificent 
royal robes he had scorned to wear during life, 
his jeweled crown upon his head, his golden 
scepter in his right hand, and spread open 
across his knees the beautiful painted Bible 
made at Tours and which Master Alcuin had 
presented to him that famous Christmas Day. 

And then, by and by, the minnesingers began 
to make up songs about him; and for hundreds 
of years more and more were made up, all of 
them growing more and more wonderful till the 
song-stories of which Charlemagne is the hero 
are counted today among the most beautiful 
in the world. And many of these minnesingers 
tell strange tales. Some of them even declare 
that the great monarch is not dead, but that 
fairies and wizards carried him off to a marvel- 
ous cavern in the lofty mountain of Dessenberg, 
and that there he sits sleeping a magical sleep, 


116 OUR LITTLE FRANKISH COUSIN 


his head resting on a white marble table and 
his long white beard flowing to his feet. Xhey 
say the mountain dwarfs guard the cavern, but 
that some day — some day — Charlemagne 
will waken ! And, if he does — Oh, wouldn’t 
you like to be there to see? 


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FAMOUS FRONTIERSMEN AND HEROES 
OF THE BORDER 

This book is devoted to a description of the adventur- 
ous lives and stirring experiences of many pioneer heroes 
who were prominently identified with the opening of the 
Great West. 

“ The accounts are not only authentic, but distinctly 
readable, making a book of wide appeal to all who love 
the history of actual adventure.” — Cleveland Leader . 

A — 4 


BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 


HILDEGARDE- MARGARET SERIES 

By Laura E. Richards 
Eleven Volumes 

The Hildegarde-Margaret Series, beginning with 
“ Queen Hildegarde ” and ending with “ The Merry- 
weathers,” make one of the best and most popular series 
of books for girls ever written. 

Each large 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated, 

; per volume . . . . . . . $1.25 
The eleven volumes boxed as a set . . . $13.75 

LIST OF TITLES 

QUEEN HILDEGARDE 

HILDEGARDE ’S HOLIDAY 

HILDEGARDE^ HOME 

HILDEGARDE’S NEIGHBORS 

HILDEGARDE ’S HARVEST 

THREE MARGARETS 

MARGARET MONTFORT 

PEGGY 

RITA 

FERNLEY HOUSE 

THE MERRYWEATHERS 
A — $ 


THE PAGE COMP ANTS 


THE CAPTAIN JANUARY SERIES 

By Laura E. Richards 
Each 12mo, cloth decorative , illustrated, per 
volume ....... 50 cents 

CAPTAIN JANUARY 

A charming idyl of New England coast life, whose 
success has been very remarkable. 

SAME. Illustrated Holiday Edition . . $1.25 

SAME, French Text. Illustrated Holiday 
Edition $1.25 

MELODY: The Story of a Child. 

SAME. Illustrated Holiday Edition . . $1.25 

MARIE 

A companion to “Melody” and “Captain January.” 

ROSIN THE BEAU 

A sequel to “ Melody ” and “ Marie.” 

SNOW-WHITE; Or, The House in the Wood. 

JIM OF HELLAS; Or, In Durance Vile, and 
a companion story, Bethesda Pool. 

NARCISSA 

And a companion story, In Verona, being two de- 
lightful short stories of New England life. 

“SOME SAY n 

And a companion story, Neighbors in Cyrus. 

NAUTILUS 

“ ‘ Nautilus ’ is by far the best product of the author’s 
powers, and is certain to achieve the wide success it so 
richly merits.” 

ISLA HERON 

This interesting story is written in the author’s usual 
charming manner. 

THE LITTLE MASTER 

“ A well told, interesting tale of a high character.”— 
California Gateway Gazette. 

A — 6 


BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 


DELIGHTFUL BOOKS FOR LITTLE 

FOLKS 

By Laura E. Richard* 

THREE MINUTE STORIES 

Cloth decorative, 12mo, with eight plates in full color 
and many text illustrations by Josephine Bruce. 

Net $1.25; carriage paid $1.40 
“ Little ones will understand and delight in the stories 
and poems.” — Indianapolis News. 

FIVE MINUTE STORIES 

Cloth decorative, square 12mo, illustrated . $1.25 
A charming collection of short stories and clever poems 
for children. 

MORE FIVE MINUTE STORIES 

Cloth decorative, square 12mo, illustrated . $1.25 
A noteworthy collection of short stories and poems 
for children, which will prove as popular with mothers 
as with boys and girls. 

FIVE MICE IN A MOUSE TRAP 

Cloth decorative, square 12mo, illustrated . $1.25 

The story of their lives and other wonderful things 
related by the Man in the Moon, done in the vernacular 
from the lunacular form by Laura E. Richards. 

WHEN I WAS YOUR AGE 

Cloth, 8vo, illustrated . . . . . $1.25 

The title most happily introduces the reader to the 
charming home life of Doctor Howe and Mrs. Julia 
Ward Howe, during the childhood of the author. 

A HAPPY LITTLE TIME 

Cloth, 8 vo, illustrated . . . . . $1.25 

Little Betty and the happy time she had will appeal 
strongly to mothers as well as to the little ones who will 
have this story read to them, and appeal all the more 
on account of its being such a “ real ” story. 

A — 7 


THE PAGE COMPANY’S 


THE BOYS’ STORY OF THE 
RAILROAD SERIES 

By Burton E. Stevenson 

Each large 12mo, cloth decorative , illustrated, 'per 
volume .... $1.50 

THE YOUNG SECTION - HAND ; Or, The Ad- 

ventures of Allan West. 

“ A thrilling story, well told, clean and bright. The 
whole range of section railroading is covered in the story, 
and it contains information as well as interest.” — Chicago 
Post. 

THE YOUNG TRAIN DISPATCHER 

“ A vivacious account of the varied and often hazard- 
ous nature of railroad life, full of incident and adventure, 
in which the author has woven admirable advice about 
honesty, manliness, self-culture, good reading, and the 
secret* of success.” — Congregationalism 

THE YOUNG TRAIN MASTER 

“ It is a book that can be unreservedly commended to 
anyone who loves a good, wholesome, thrilling, informing 
yarn.” — Passaic News. 

THE YOUNG APPRENTICE} Or, Allan West’s 
Chum. 

“ The story is intensely interesting, and one gains an 
intimate knowledge of the methods and works in the 
great car shops not easily gained elsewhere.” — Baltimore 
Sun. 

“ It appeals to every boy of enterprising spirit, and at 
the same time teaches him some valuable lessons in honor, 
pluck, and perseverance.” — Cleveland Plain Dealer. 

u The lessons that the books teach in development of 
uprightness, honesty and true manly character are sure 
to appeal to the reader.” — The American Boy . 


BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 


THE LITTLE COLONEL BOOKS 

(Trade Mark) 

By Annie Fellows Johnston 
Each large 12mo, cloth, illustrated, per volume . SI. 50 

THE LITTLE COLONEL STORIES 

(Trade Mark) 

Being three “ Little Colonel ” stories in the Cosy Corner 
Series, “ The Little Colonel,” “ Two Little Knights of 
Kentucky,” and “ The Giant Scissors,” in a single volume. 

THE LITTLE COLONEL’S HOUSE PARTY 

(Trade Mark) 

THE LITTLE COLONEL’S HOLIDAYS 

(Trade Mark) 

THE LITTLE COLONEL’S HERO 

(Trade Mark) 

THE LITTLE COLONEL AT BOARDING- 

(Trade Mark) 

* SCHOOL 

THE LITTLE COLONEL IN ARIZONA 

(Trade Mark) 

THE LITTLE COLONEL’S CHRISTMAS 

(Trade Mark) 

VACATION 

THE LITTLE COLONEL, MAID OF HONOR 

(Trade Mark) 

THE LITTLE COLONEL’S KNIGHT COMES 

(Trade Mark) 

RIDING 

MARY WARE: THE LITTLE COLONEL’S 

(Trade Mark) 

CHUM 

MARY WARE IN TEXAS 
MARY WARE’S PROMISED LAND 

These twelve volumes, boxed as a set, $18.00. 


THE HAVE COMPANY’S 


SPECIAL HOLIDAY EDITIONS 

Each small quarto . cloth decorative , per volume . $1.25 

New plates, handsomely illustrated with eight full-page 
drawings in color, and many marginal sketches. 

THE LITTLE COLONEL 

(Trade Mark) 

TWO LITTLE KNIGHTS OF KENTUCKY 
THE GIANT SCISSORS 
BIG BROTHER 

THE JOHNSTON JEWEL SERIES 

Each small 16 mo, cloth decorative, with frontispiece 

and decorative text borders, per volume . Net $0.50 

IN THE DESERT OF WAITING: The Legend 
* of Camelback Mountain. 

THE THREE WEAVERS: A Fairy Tale for 
> Fathers and Mothers as Well as for Their 
Daughters. 

KEEPING TRYST: A Tale of King Arthur’s 
Time. 

THE LEGEND OF THE BLEEDING HEART 
THE RESCUE OF PRINCESS WINSOME: 

A Fairy Play for Old and Young. 

THE JESTER’S SWORD 


THE LITTLE COLONEL’S GOOD TIMES 
BOOK 

Uniform in size with the Little Colonel Series . $1.50 

Bound in white kid (morocco) and gold . Net 3.00 
Cover design and decorations by Peter Verberg. 
li A mighty attractive volume in which the owner may 
record the good times she has on decorated pages, and 
under the directions as it were of Annie Fellows John- 
ston.” — Buffalo Express . 

A— 10 


BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 


THE LITTLE COLONEL DOLL BOOK — 
First Series 

Quarto, boards, printed in colors . . . $1.50 

A series of “ Little Colonel ” dolls. Each has several 
changes of costume, so they can be appropriately clad 
for the rehearsal of any scene or incident in the series. 

THE LITTLE COLONEL DOLL BOOK- 
Second Series 

Quarto, boards, printed in colors . . . $1.50 

An artistic series of paper dolls, including not only 
lovable Mary Ware, the Little Colonel’s chum, but many 
another of the much loved characters which appear in 
the last three volumes of the famous “ Little Colonel 
Series.” 

ASA HOLMES 

By Annie Fellows Johnston. 

With a frontispiece by Ernest Fosbery. 

16mo, cloth decorative, gilt top . . . $1.00 

11 1 Asa Holmes ’ is the most delightful, most sympa- 
thetic and wholesome book that has been published in a 
long while.” — Boston Times. 

TRAVELERS FIVE: ALONG LIFE’S HIGH- 
WAY 

By Annie Fellows Johnston. 

With an introduction by Bliss Carman, and a frontis- 
piece by E. H. Garrett. 

12mo, cloth decorative $1.25 

“ Mrs. Johnston broadens her reputation with this book 
so rich in the significance of common things.” — Boston 
Advertiser. 

JOEL: A BOY OF GALILEE 

By Annie Fellows Johnston. 

12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . . .$1.50 

“ The book is a very clever handling of the greatest 
event in the history of the world.” — Rochester , N . Y. t 
Herald. 

A— 11 


THE PAGE COMPANY’S 


THE BOYS’ STORY OF THE ARMY 
SERIES 

_>y Florence Kimball Russel 

BORN TO THE BLUE 

12m o, cloth decorative, illustrated . . . $1.25 

“ The story deserves warm commendation and genuine 
popularity.” — Army and Navy Register. 

IN WEST POINT GRAY 

12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . . . $1.50 

“ One of the best books that deals with West Point.” — 
New York Sun. 

FROM CHEVRONS TO SHOULDER- 
STRAPS 

12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . . . $1.50 

“ The life of a cadet at West Point is portrayed very 
realistically.” — The Hartford Post, Hartford, Conn. 

DOCTOR’S LITTLE GIRL SERIES 

By Marion Ames Taggart 

Each large 12mo, cloth, illustrated, per volume , $1.50 

THE DOCTOR’S LITTLE GIRL 

“ A charming story of the ups and downs of the life 
of a dear little maid.” — The Churchman. 

SWEET NANCY: The Further Adventures of 
the Doctor’s Little Girl. 

“Just the sort of book to amuse, while its influence 
cannot but be elevating.” — New York Sun. 

NANCY, THE DOCTOR’S LITTLE PARTNER 

“ The story is sweet and fascinating, such as many 
girls of wholesome tastes will enjoy.” — Springfield Union. 

NANCY PORTER’S OPPORTUNITY 

“ Nancy shows throughout that she is a splendid young 
woman, with plenty of pluck.” — Boston Globe. 

NANCY AND THE COGGS TWINS 

“ The story is refreshing.” — New York Sun* 

A —12 


BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 


WORKS OF EVALEEN STEIN 

THE CHRISTMAS PORRINGER 

12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated by Adelaide 

Everhart SI. 25 

This story happened many hundreds of years ago in 
the quaint Flemish city of Bruges and concerns a little 
girl named Karen, who worked at lace-making with her 
aged grandmother. 

GABRIEL AND THE HOUR BOOK 

Small quarto, cloth decorative, illustrated and 
decorated in colors by Adelaide Everhart . . $1.25 

“ No works in juvenile fiction contain so many of the 
elements that stir the hearts of children and grown-ups as 
well as do the stories so admirably told by this author.” 

— Louisville Daily Courier. 

A LITTLE SHEPHERD OF PROVENCE 

12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated by Diantha 

H. Marlowe $1.25 

i( The storv should be one of the influences in the life 
of every child to whom good stories can be made to 
appeal.” — Public Ledger. 

THE LITTLE COUNT OF NORMANDY 

12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated by John Goss $1.25 
“ This touching and pleasing story is told with a wealth 
of interest coupled with enlivening descriptions of the 
country where its scenes are laid and of the people thereof.” 

— Wilmington Every Evening. 


ELEANOR OF THE HOUSEBOAT 

By Louise M. Breitenbach. 

12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . . . $1.50 

An unusually interesting story of how Eleanor Tracy 
spent a wonderful summer on a houseboat. 

A— 13 


THE PAGE COMPANY’S 


HISTORICAL BOOKS 

THE BOYS OF ’61; Or, Four Years of Fighting. 
By Charles Carleton Coffin. 

Standard Edition. An entirely new edition, cloth deco- 
rative, 8vo, with nearly two hundred illustrations, $2.00 
Popular Edition. Cloth decorative, 12mo, with eight 

illustrations $1.00 

A record of personal observation with the Army and 
Navy, from the Battle of Bull Run to the fall of Rich- 
mond. 

THE BOYS OF 1812 ; And Other Naval Heroes. 
By James Russell Soley. 

Cloth decorative, 8vo, illustrated . . . $2.00 

“ The book is full of stirring incidents and adven- 
tures.” — Boston Herald. 

THE SAILOR BOYS OF ’6i 

By James Russell Soley. 

Cloth decorative, 8vo, illustrated . . . $2.00 

“ It is written with an enthusiasm that never allows 
the interest to slacken.” — The Call, Newark, N. J. 

BOYS OF FORT SCHUYLER 

By James Otis. 

Cloth decorative, square 12mo, illustrated . $1.25 
“ It is unquestionably one of the best historical Indian 
stories ever written.” — Boston Herald. 

FAMOUS WAR STORIES 

By Charles Carleton Coffin 
Each cloth decorative, 12mo, illustrated, per vol., $1.25 

WINNING HIS WAY 

A story of a young soldier in the Civil War. 

MY DAYS AND NIGHTS ON THE BAT- 
TLEFIELD 

A story of the Battle of Bull Run and other battles in 
Kentucky, Tennessee, and on the Mississippi. 

FOLLOWING THE FLAG 

A story of the Army of the Potomac in the Civil War. 
A — 14* 


BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 


STORIES OF NEWSBOY LIFE 

By James Otis * 

Each 12mo, cloth decorative , illustrated, per 
volume . . . . . . . . $1.25 

JENNY WREN’S BOARDING HOUSE 

“ Distinctively a story of newsboy life in New York, 
and Mr. Otis very quickly finds his way to the sensitive 
and loving heart that beats under the ragged and torn 
coat of the little boy who is untiring in his efforts to sell 
his papers and thereby earn a mere pittance to sustain 
life.” — Boston Herald. 

TEDDY AND CARROTS; Oh, Two Merchants 

of Newspaper Row. 

His newsboys are real and wide-awake, and his story 
abounds with many exciting scenes and graphic incidents. 

THE BOYS’ REVOLT 

A story of the street arabs of New York. 

“ This is the story of a strike of bootblack boys in the 
city of New York and it contains stirring scenes and 
incidents.” — The Christian Register. 

JERRY’S FAMILY 

The story of a street waif of New York. 

It is written in the author’s best vein, the scene being 
one in which he has won many brilliant successes, i.e., 
picturing life among the street arabs of New York. 

THE PRINCESS AND JOE POTTER 

“ The secret of the author’s success lies in his wonder- 
ful sympathy with the aspirations of child-life, his truth- 
ful delineation of life among the children who act as his 
object lessons.” — New York Sun. 

LARRY HUDSON’S AMBITION 

“ The book is written with brisk and deft cleverness.” 
— New York Sun. 

“ An attractive story, with a healthy outdoor atmos- 
phere.” — New York Commercial Advertiser 

A— 15 


THE PAGE COMPANY’S 


THE SANDMAN SERIES 

By William J. Hopkins 
Each large 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated, 

'per volume ....... $1.50 

THE SANDMAN : His Farm Stories. 

“ Mothers and fathers and kind elder sisters who take 
the little ones to bed and rack their brains for stories 
will find this book a treasure.” — Cleveland Leader . 

THE SANDMAN : More Farm Stories. 

“ Children will call for these stories over and over 
again.” — • Chicago Evening Post. 

THE SANDMAN : Hi* Ship Stories. 

“ Little ones will understand and delight in the stories 
and their parents will read between the lines and recog- 
nize the poetic and artistic work of the author.” — 
Indianapolis News. 

THE SANDMAN: Hi* Ska Stories. 

“ Once upon a time there w as a man w ho knew little 
children and the kind of stories they liked, so he wrote 
four books of Sandman’s stories, all about the farm o^ 
the sea, and the brig Indmstry, and this book is one of 
them.” — Canadian Congregationalist. 


THE SANDMAN: His Animal Stories. 

By Harrt W. Femes. 

“The Sandman is a wonderful fellow. First, he told 
farm stories, then ship stories, then sea stories. And 
now he tells about the kittens and puppies and the fun 
they had in Kittycat Town, which is somewhere in Ani- 
mal Land.” — - Pittsburgh Chronicle Telegraph. 


THE SANDMAN: His Songs and Rhymes. 

By Jinny Wallis. 

A choice collection of the best songs and rhymes that 
the best writers of many lands and of past decades have 
produced, attractively arranged by Jenny Wallis, 

A— 16 









